SOVIET RESTRICTION ON TRAVEL BY FOREIGNERS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP84-00825R000100700001-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 25
• Document Creation Date: November 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 27, 2000
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: December 1, 1966
• Content Type: IR

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Intelligence Report
SOVIET RESTRICTIONS ON
TRAVEL BY FOREIGNERS
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December 1966
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CONTENTS
Page
Summary . 1
I. Introduction 3
II. Registration and Monitoring of Travel 3
III. Closed Areas 4
A. Background 4
B. Current situation 5
I. European USSR 5
2. Central Asia and Kazakhstan 7
3. Eastern USSR 8
4. Cities 9
a. Opened Cities 9
b. Closed Cities 9
c. Moscow and Leningrad 10
APPENDIXES
Page
A. Chronology of Closed-Area Actions 13
B. Translation of July 1966 Soviet Note 15
C. Official Status of Cities with 100,000 or More Inhabitants 21
MAPS
(following page 26)
USSR: Changes in Areas Closed to Foreigners-19594966 (54769)
Moscow Oblast: Areas Closed to Foreigners-22 July 1966 (54610)
USSR: Travel Restrictions-22 July 1966 (54818)
USSR: Areas Closed to Foreigners-22 July 1966 (55386)
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Soviet Restrictions on Travel by Foreigners
SUMMARY
The Soviet Government has long maintained a policy of close control over
- the movements of all foreigners within the USSR. This policy is implemented
at the official level by closing specified areas to travel on both a continuing and
an ad hoc basis and by requiring preregistration of all travel in open areas.
These official restrictions are supplemented by surveillance and harassment of
travelers in order to prevent observation of any installations of military or indus-
trial significance. The consequence of both official and unofficial restrictions has
been to effectively shield over 95 percent of the USSR from observation by
foreigners.
The most recent Soviet note on travel restrictions was circulated on 22 July
1966. It reaffirmed the existing system of preregistration of all travel by for-
eigners and modified slightly the list of closed areas. The overall effect of this
note was to reduce the closed area of the country from 26.5 percent to 23 percent
of the total. Several large areas of probably little intel-
ligence significance in the eastern part of the country have
been opened to travel, and several less extensive but pre-
sumably strategically important areas in the west have been
closed. In addition to officially closing interior areas of
military significance, the new note reflects increased concern
about security in the western USSR.There is no completely sat-
isfactory explanation for several newly closed areas; their
general locational pattern suggests the possibility that they
are potential defensive missile sites, but there is no evi-
dence that this is the case.
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I. INTRODUCTION
The techniques used by the Soviet Government to control and
monitor travel by foreigners within the USSR have been quite
effective in liraiting observation of areas that they consid?
er sensitive. Although the Soviet' note of 22 July 1966
slightly reduces the extent of the officially closed areas, the overall system of
tight control over travel by foreigners remains unaltered, Embassy personnel are
required to notify Soviet authorities before undertaking travel to any areas,offi-
daily, open beyond the outskirts of Moscow; such travel is frequently not allowed
for specified or unspecified reasons. Tourist travel within the Soviet Union is
effectively controlled by Intourist, the government tourist service, through which
all travel arrangements must be made.
This system of control permits Soviet authorities to identify travel plans
which are likely to permit observation of areas they consider to be sensitive and
to develop surveillance and harassment tactics to counter this hazard. As a con-
sequence there is great disparity between the land area that is officially open
to Westerners and that on which effective observation and reporting is feasible.
In 1960 a detailed review of all travel in the USSR by Western embassy personnel
during the preceding 18 months indicated that less than 5 percent of the total
area of the country would have been observable if perfect observation conditions
had prevailed on every trip. Factors such as harassment, .poor visibility, and
physical obstructions to vision substantially decreased the area actually observed.
It was concluded that at a time when approximately 75 percent of the USSR
was technically open .to travel, the combined efforts of western diplomatic per-
sonnel provided direct observation of less than 1 percent.
?
IL REGISTRATION AND MONITORING OF TRAVEL
The current Soviet note requires prior notification of all travel by embassy
personnel. Notice must be given at least 2 working days in advance of a trip,
and it must include the route, places and duration of stops, and mode of trans-
portation. Military attaches submit their travel plans to the External Relations
Division of the Ministry of Defense, USSR, and other embassy personnel to the
Protocol Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, USSR. The only exception
to the regulations is for travel in limited areas in the immediate vicinity of Mos-
cow, for which notification is not required (see Map 54610).
The travel notification system enables Soviet authorities to prohibit on an ad hoc
basis travel to any open area or city by declaring it temporarily closed or by
using some other pretext such as the lack of transportation or hotel accommoda-
tions. It also provides time to organize surveillance machinery for trips that are
registered as requested. Essentially the same regulations have been in effect since
1941, with the exception of the war years when movement required the possession
of an NKVD pass.
Travel by other foreigners in the USSR?tourists, businessmen, scholars, and
journalists?is effectively controlled and monitored by .Intourist. Travel op-
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portunities for these persons are as restricted as they are for embassy personnel,
being generally limited to standard Intourist routes and facilities.
Approved travel by private auto is carefully monitored by the police. Efforts
to follow side roads or to explore the countryside usnally are repelled quickly.
Regulations govern the taking of photographs, and penalties for violation of
these provisions can be imposed. In August 1960, after the note on travel re-
strictions had been circulated, a law prescribing penalities for repeated violation
of travel regulations was passed. Ordinary travelers who stray more than twice
from approved routes or areas are subject to a minimum penalty of a 50-ruble
($55.00) fine or a maximum penalty of a year's confinement. Diplomatic person-
nel who stray are subject to expulsion from the country.
III. CLOSED AREAS
A. Background
Areas and cities from which foreign travelers are excluded have been desig-
nated in a series of Soviet notes, the first of which was issued in May 1941.
Initially these closed-area restrictions were thought to apply only to diplomatic
personnel, but subsequent notes have made it clear that they are applicable
to all foreigners. Transit of forbidden areas and cities is possible, but according
to a 1948 note it must be by means of public conveyance and without stop-over
in a prohibited area. Approved transit routes through some closed areas have
also been specified in the notes. ,
The list of closed areas has been modified substantially over the years (see
Appendix A). In 1941 most of the administrative units adjacent to the western
border of the Soviet Union as well as many of the industrial centers of the
interior were declared off limits. In addition, certain areas occupied primarily
by Turkic and Mongolian peoples were closed?the entirety of Soviet Central
Asia and the Mongolian areas southeast of Lake Baikal, which had been the
scene of nationalist unrest in connection with the Pan-Mongolian movement
during the 1920's and 1930's.
During World War II some of the closed areas were visited by foreigners,
but after the war travel regulations were again enforced. 'the area in which
travel was banned was expanded considerably by notes issued in 1948 and 1952.
The remainder of the border was sealed, and the major industrial areas were
closed. The Donbas, the Urals, and Moscow (Moskoysktiva) and Gor'kiy
(Gorlovskaya) oblasts were added to the forbidden list. Travel to several non-
Russian republics along the Volga was also prohibited. Very soon after the
1952 Soviet note, Canada, France, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Italy, and the
United States imposed restrictions on the travel of Soviet diplomatic personnel
in their respective countries.
In June 1953 the Soviets began to reduce the extent of their dosed areas.
Administrative units adjacent to the land boundary of the RSFSR with China
were opened, with the exception of the Buryat-Mongol'skaya ASSR and Pri-
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morskiy Kray. Other areas opened included cei lain parts of Central Asia and
Kazakhstan, the entire Donbas, Krasnodarskiv Kray, and some areas on the
western periphery?western Belorussia, Moldavia, the Karelo-Finnish SSR, and
Arkhangerskaya Oblast'.
Certain areas in the United States were closed to travel by Soviet Embassy
personnel and Tass correspondents for the first time in 1955 in order to exert
pressure on Soviet authorities to reduce further the extent of closed areas in the
USSR. Initially this policy was ineffective, as Soviet closed areas actually in-
creased slightly in 1957. The subsequent Soviet notes of August 1959 and July
1966, _however, reduced the territory officially closed in the USSR until it now
comprises 23 percent of the total, an all-time low. The approximate percentage
of area closed to foreigners by Various notes is as follows:
16 May 1941
41
15 January 1952
50
22 June 1953
28
28 August 1957
29.4
18 August 1959
26.5
22 July 1966
23
B. Current Situation
The July 1966 Soviet note concerning closed areas (see Appendix B) super-
sedes and clarifies the four preceding notes, which were cumulative in their
effect. Although the note to a large extent only reaffirms the previously existing
situation, several large areas in the eastern part of the country have been opened
,
to travel, and several less extensive but strategically important areas in the west
have been closed (see Paps 54769 and 55386). The New note
appears to reflect increased security precautions in the
western USSR and concern 'about interior transportation
and communication routes and facilities. There is no completely satisfactory
explanation for several newly closed areas; their general locational pattern sug-
gests the possibility that they are potential defensive missile sites, but as, yet
there is no evidence that this is the case.
Official sanction is now given to a number of de facto changes in travel policy
that had become apparent in recent years with respect to certain urban areas,
tourist routes, and waterways. Soviet concern with unofficial travel is revealed
by the inclusion in the note, for the first time, of instructions regarding tourists
and tourist facilities.
I. EUROPEAN USSR
Official proscriptions on travel have been most altered in the northwestern
part of European USSR. Whereas only the Baltic republics, Kaliningradskaya
Oblast', and western Leningradskaya Oblast' had been closed before, seven ?
additional areas are now on the closed list, as well as the White Sea ? Baltic Canal
and the Volga ? Baltic Waterway. The closings indicate ,a general .tightening
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of security in areas of known communication and military installations and along
strategic transport routes.
The large closed area adjacent to the Baltic Sea has been extended eastward
to include parts of Novgorodskava and Pskovsl: Iva onlAsts, _although the cities of
Novgorod and Pskov remain open.. Closure of western Arkhangerskava Oblast'
means that the rail line to Arkhangel'sx arid the area tha
it serves are officially off- limits. Leshukonskiy Rayon in
Arkhangekkaya Oblast' also has been closed. Its administrative center, I,f-shu-
konskoye, is the eastern terminus of the broad-gauge rail line currently under
construction from Arkliangask. The line is ostensibly for timber exploitation,
but it also provides a new area with the potential for weapons deployment.
The newly. :771osed northwestern poriioa of Murmanskaya Ob.a;5
includes such sensitive installations as a long-range-bomber
base. Foreign tourists, however, arc permitted to tra.el
through this newly closed area by auto from Borisoglebsk- to Nikel' and bY train
from Nike to Murmansk. Excursions to the Borisoglebsk CES (hydroelectric
plant) near the Norwegian boundary are permitted, but only to Scandinavian
tourists.
The reasons behind the closing of two small triangular areas in the Karel'skaya
ASSR, one west of Belomorsk and the other southeast of Petrozavodsk, are not
completely clear. Both Belomorsk and Pctrozavodsk are centers of activity in
this sparsely inhabited northerly area, but the delineation of their associated
closed areas does not appear tO have a dose correlation with any particulg
economic or military activity. The town of Petrozavodsk together with the area
immediately to the northwest contains mans- sensitive military installations.
Petrozavodsk, however, apparently remains open, and the area closed to the
southeast along the shore of Lake Onega seemingly contains'
nothing. of unusual military interest. An unclassified report
about experimental TV- reception indicates that there should
be a tropospheric scatter station somewhere in the Petrozav-
odsk area, but it has not been located. The closing of this
area maY somehow tie in with the closing of Lake Onega and
the Volga-Baltic Waterway. In the Kemi-Belomorsk area there
is a concentration of ground troops and numerous military
installations. The strategic position of Belomorsk at the
entrance to the White Sea Baltic Canal and the alignment
of the powerlines that serve the canal locks may be the key
to this closing.
Since the Volga - Baltic Waterway was opened to traffic in 1q64, after deepening
and other improvements, general traffic has increased; the fact that small naval
vessels Such as destroyer escorts and submarines can now be moved through the
canal probably contributes to Soviet sensitivity about the route. The White
Sea - Baltic Canal is also undergoing extensive improvements that will enable
larger vessels to use the route. Although the entire Volga River has never
been officially closed, travel along it is seldom approved for diplomatic personnel.
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The closing of the Ker,h trait:s a.-ea at the entrah2e to
the Sea of ?Azov may reflect the location of military instal-
lations for the protection Of the Donbas industrial region
to the north.. The significance of the Urals industrial
region in Soviet strategic thinking is underlin..?d by the fact that it remains
closed, while the Kiizbas and Donbas have ieen open in recent years and
technically remain open to travel.
Several places and routes within closed areas in the Baltic republics, the
Ukraine, and the Caucasus are designated open specifically to foreign tourists or
are accessible via Intourist vehicles. Travel_ privileges given specifically to foreign
tourists apparently are not to be granted to embassy personnel. A Leningrad -
TAM air trip requested by the US Embassy as a test has already been refuS?ed
on the grounds that "air transportation to Tallin was authorized only for foreign
tourists traveling with Intourist."
Travelers entering the USSR through the western Ukraine are permitted to use
several different motor routes (see Map 54818). Travel by foreigners along
the route Brest - Kovel' - Lutsk Rovno, however, is restricted to Intourist ve-
hicles. Travel by private auto in the Baltic republics appears to be entirely
prohibited, since the use of Intourist vehicles is specified on all open roads.
-Foreigners are now permitted to visit the tourist base "Itkol" of the All-Union
Central Council of Trade Unions in the Caucasus, but they must. approach the
area along a specified route. Transit via auto across the Kabardino - Balkarskaya
ASSR by way of the Ordzhonikidze - Nal'ehik - Mineral nye Vodv route is also
permitted. This ASSR has been a closed area since 195, possibly because of
unsettled economic and social conditions precipitated by a 1957 decree that
permitted the exiled Balkars to return to their homeland.
2. CENTRAL ASIA AND KAZAKTISTAN
The regions bordering the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea as well as the
western oblasts of Kazakhstan continue to be closed to foreigners. Installations
of major strategic significance within this area include the nuclear desalinization
plant complex at Scgendy. North of the Caspian Sea the closed area extends
westward beyond ? the Kazakh border to the Volga Rivep.
Although Astrakhan' lies within this closed area, the city
is open, and passage to it by air is permitted.
Included in the forbidden list for the first time in recent
years is the Kzyl-Ordinakaya Oblast' in the Kazakh S S R.
This will, probably block all travel on the Orenburg-Tashkent
rail line.
Three relatively small areas in Central Asia have been closed
without obvious justification. The closed area northwest
of Termez has no clear relationship to military installations
in the are. This general area is regarded as potentially
suitable for clandestine nuclear test operations, but there
is no evidence that such testing takes place. Natural
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gas deposits and sulfur mines are located in the closed area north of Ashkhabad;
some reports dating back a decade allege atomic experim, nts near Serzwv Zayod.
but recent intelligence has not confirmed these active 3 S. Finally. there is no
explanation for the closing of Batkeuskiy Rayon in tb kirgiz SSR. Radioactive
minerals have been detected in the area, but no mining activities are known to
be present.
Areas adjacent to Tashkent and Frunze, along with the Tadzhik SSR and
Khorezmskaya Oblast' of the Uzbek SSR. have been recently opened. Military
and industrial installations in these areas are of limited significance; however.
trips to these non-Russian border regions should prove of considerable interest
in terms of assessing general economic and social conditions.
3. EASTERN USSR
The most extensive areas newly opened to travel in the eastern USSR include
the Taymyr Peninsula, Severnaya Zemlya, western Chukhotskskiy NO, and most
of Magadanskaya Oblast' and the Buryatskaya ASSR (see Map 54769). The
opening of areas such as the Taynwr Peninsula, Severnaya Zeml> t, and western
Chukhotia is of no significance, since there is little reason for anyone to travel
there nor any facilities to do so.. Opening of the Burvatskava ASSR and
Magadanskaya Oblast' may permit some useful. economic and Social reporting._
but with the exception of the city of Ulan-Ude, these areas are Of limited intelli-
gence significance.
In the Buryatskaya ASSII.only a small strip of land bordering Lake Baikal
remains closed. The area contains no known sensitive. instal-
lations. It does, include a state forest preserve, and it is
a very important sable farming area. Sable, like caviar, is
in its own way an important Soviet industry, but it hardly
seems to warrant this type of protection.
Travel in Magadanskaya Oblast', a mining_ region settled largely by former
forced laborers, is handicapped by the closing of the only logical point of entry?
Magadan. This has the de facto effect of keeping the entire area closed.
Closure of the area around Barabinsk in Noyosibirskava Oblast' appears to
reflect the longstanding sensitivity of the Soviets about transport facilities.
Barabinsk is reportedly the site of one of the largest locomotive parks in the
Soviet Union. The Lena River also has been closed to travel by the new note:
previously only the Yenisey River had been dosed.
Kamchatskaya Oblast', an impact area for missile testing, and eastern Chnkhotsk-
skaya NO, location of early-warning radar installations, remain dosed for under-
standable reasons. In the instance of an area that has been closed since 1059
along the Lena River, however, the only explanation is the existence at the town
of Sangar of a suspect troposcatter site. It shuld be noted,
however, that facilities of this type are also present in
open areas. The militarily important areas of Sakhalinskaya
Oblastt and Primorskiy Kray continue to be closed, The new
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antly tightens controls -Ln the Soviet Fax East by officially
sealing off the Sovetskaya Cavan' area which Contains exten-
sive naval facilities
r
4. CITIES
'The status of inchvidual cities is of gr cat importance because most travel in
the Soviet Union constitutes hopping fi om one city to another via public trans-
portatiori, usually by plane or rail. Free auto travel through the countryside
is unusual except along several specified routes in the European USSR that are
open to tourists.. 'Moreover, closing a city that is the administrative center and
.regional transport hub severely limits the feasibility of travel anywhere within
the region.
? ?, ,
. ,
?-Aniroximately 50 of the 187 cities in the USSR with more than 100,000 in-
, _
.habitants are offiCially closed to foreigners; actually, numerous others have had no
-
.;fpseign visitors for many years. Appendix C shows the changes in official status
--di major citie,S,in the USSR in terms of accessibility to foreigners since the first
restrictions, werj-iMposed in 1941.
?vr
a. Opened Cities
,. Kazan and Novosibirsk are the largest of the cities opened by terms of the
1966 note. Kazan' liad been open from 1953 to 1959, but closed - since--1959.
Novosibirsl: had been closed since 1952. Nevertheless, foreigners have been
permitted to visit both thee places in recent years, and several exchange dcle-
?gations have toured the new science city located on the southern edge of No-
vosibirsk. Military and industrial installations of intelligence interest abound in
both Kazan' and Novosibirsk.. In addition, Kazan' is the administrative center
of the Muslim Tatars, the second largest non-Slavic group in the USSR.
Another major city, Ulan-Ude, the capital of the Burvatskava ASSR, Is now
officially open because the ASSR, with the exception of a small strip bordering
Lake Baikal,?has been removed from the closed' list. Noted as a major rail center
in the eastern USSR, Ulan-Ude is the point of juncture of the rail line from
China via Ulan-Bator. It also contains a variety of other intelligence targets.
Rovno and Ternopol' were added to the list of open cities in the western
UkTaine, continuing a process of opening specific cities in this closed area to
foreign visitors. Yurmala, the 'coastal resort town for Riga, and Ventspils were
opened in Latvia.
b. Closed Cities
Cities put off Limits by the new note include Angarsk,
and Saratov. An atomic energy complex makes Angarsk a very sen-
sitive area. Saratov and. its environs?including Engel's-- con-
tain many targets of considerable strategic significance, and
in practice both cities have always been closed.
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With the exception of Khabarovsk and Nal:hr,4.1 II the cities of the Soviet
Far East are now closed. Although Okhotsk, :\ ik lwevsk, Komsomorsk, and
Sovetskaya Gavan' theoretically had been 'open up to this tirne, visits by for-
eigners were rare.
Land access to cities such as Arkhangel'sk N'orkuta, and Murmansk requires
travel through newly closed areas, and transit privileges are not likely to be
granted. This may curtail visits to Arkhangelsk and Murmansk, even though
they are not specificallyclosed and may be reached by air or possibly by ocean
vessel: Travel to Vorkuta has never been possible, although its official status
has varied. . While this new note does not explicitly close the city, access to it
is effectively blocked by the closed strip, 50-kilometers in width, which extends
along the railroad from Theleznodorozhnyy to Vorkuta.
Previous Soviet notes have specifically mentioned Batumi, Echmiadzin, Yerevan,
and Ashkhabad as open, since they lie within or partially within a 2.5-kilometer
closed zone that extends along the entire land boundary of the USSR with non-
Communist countries. However, the recent note does not mention them, and
their official: status is presently unclear.
c. Moscow and Leningrad
Detailed regulations have governed travel in the Moscow area since 1948.
At that time unrestricted auto travel was officially limited to an area within a
50-kilometer radius of the center of the city. In 1952 the radius was reduced
to 40 kilometers and specified areas Within this radius were put off limits. The?
extent of the closed areas within this radius has been gradually extended by
subsequent notes.
The July 1966 note significantly expands the closed areas within the 40-kilo-
meter zone surrounding Moscow (see Map 54610). East of Moscow, areas
25X1B around Balashikha and southeast of Lyubertsy alona the Ryazan' Highway are
now for the first time officially closed,
25X1B
West of Moscow the expansion of t e c ?se( area up to tie city
(the ring road) places all of the largely agricultural Odintsovskiv Rayon beyond
reach. Travel through this region, however, is still possible along the Minsk
Highway. There are few installations of any intelligence sig-
nificance in this area, indicating that the changes may have
been made either to simplify administrative procedures or as
a prelude to new military construction.
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Beyond the 40-kilometer zone the only new opening in Moscow Oblast' is
Dubna, location of the joint Institute of Nuch ar Research. Travel to Dubna
is permitted along the Dmitrov highway, a i'lajor route heretofore closed to
travel. The city .of Dmitrov remains closed, b,J limited observation of it prob-
ably will be possible from the highway.
In the vicinity of Leningrad travel is rwrmitted within a 30-kilometer zone and
to a few nearby towns-Zelenogorsk. Gatchina, and Petrokrepose. Kronshtadt,
the island naval base, lies outside the open area:
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APPENDIX A
Chronology of Closed-Area Actions
16 May 41 Initial Soviet note. Regulations for registration of travel by all
diplomatic personnel established. Certain areas and cities of
the USSR closed to travel by all foreigners.
7. Jun 41 US note. Prior registration of all travel by Soviet Embassy and
consular personnel in the United States required.
23 Jun 41 US travel restrictions lifted,
30 Sep 48 Soviet note. New list of closed areas in USSR presented.
27 Oct 48 Soviet note. Rules governing transit through forbidden areas and
travel within 50-kilometer radius from the center of Moscow
clarified.
15 Jan 52 Soviet note. List of places closed in September 1948- exteiiaed.
10 Mar 52 US note. Prior registration of travel by Soviet personnel in the
United States again required.
22 Jun 53 Soviet note. List of areas closed completely revised. System of
preliminary registration retained.
12 Nov 53 Soviet note. Five port areas added to closed list.
? Feb 54 Soviet circular note. Regulations restricting photography in the
USSR established.
3 Jan 55 US note. Areas in the United States closed to Soviet citizens for
the first time.
20 Jul 57 Peter the Great Bay (Vladivostok) closed to foreign ships and
planes.
13 Aug 57 United States protests closure of Peter the Great Bay.
28 Aug 57 Soviet note. June 1953 list of closed areas amended. USSR indi-
cates willingness to discuss reciprocal reductions.
11 Nov 57 US proposal for abolition of closed areas.
22 May 58 United States offers concrete proposals for reciprocal reduction of
closed areas.
18 Aug 59 Soviet note. June 1953 list of closed areas amended further.
6 Jan 61 .US note. Abolition or reduction of US and Soviet travel restrictions
proposed. US list of closed areas revised.
22 Jul 66 Soviet note. Four previous notes superseded. Comprehensive list
of closed areas issued. System of preliminary registration re-
affirmed.
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APPENDIX B.
Translation of July 1966 Soviet Note
Moscow, 22 July 1966
To All Embassies,. City of Moscow
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the USSR presents its compliments to the
Embassies and has the honor to communicate that the government of the USSR
has put into effect a new single list of cities and regions of the USSR which are
forbidden for visits by foreigners. The lists in effect up to the present time,
which were communicated by the Ministry in Notes No. 295/Pr of 22 June 1953,
No. 400/Pr of 12 November 1953, No. 335/Pr of 28 August 1957 and No. 485/Pr
of 18 August 1959, are no longer valid.
In presenting the new list, the Ministry requests that it be used as a guide for
trips made by personnel of Embassies on the territory of the USSR. The exist-
ing procedure of registration of trips beyond the 40-kilometer zone around the
city of Moscow is maintained. As in the past, written notification of trips by
personnel of Embassies with indication of route to be followed, places and dura-
tion of stops, and also mode of transportation are to be sent to the Protocol
Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, USSR, and of trips by military attache
personnel to the External Relations Division, Ministry of Defense, USSR, 48
hours before the beginning of the trip. Nonworking days are not included in
that time period.
The Ministry avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Embassies its
assurances of its extremely high respect.
List of Cities and Areas of the USSR Closed to Visits by Foreigners
A 25-kilometer zone along the boundary of the USSR with Nonvay, Finland,
Turkey, Iran, and Afghanistan.
RSFSR
Chukotskiy Nationarnyy Okrug?the area to the east of the Amguyema,
B[orshaya] Osinovka, Belaya, and Mayn rivers;
Karnchatskaya and Sakhalinskaya oblasts;
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Khabarovskiv Kray?the area to the east of the AMUT and Ussuri rivers, with
the exception of the city of Khabarovsk:
Primorskiy Kray, with the exception of the city of Nakhodka, and passage to
the city of Nakhodka via the railroad from the city of Khabarovsk;
Buryatskava ASSR?an area 50-kilometers in width adjacent to Lake Baikal
between Nizhne-Angarsk and Barguzin;
Novaya Sibie Island; ?
Yakutskaya ASSR?the area between the Turnara, Dyanvshka and Lena rivers;
Taymyrskiy NationaVnvy, Okrug?the area west of the Pyasina River, includ-
ing the lakes: Pyasino, Lama, Keta and Khantayskoye;
The water route along the White Sea Baltic and Volga ? Baltic canals, the
Yenisey River, and Lena River to the north from the city of Yakutsk, Lake Onega,
with the exception of Kizhi Island and passage to it by foreign tourists via the
water route from the city Of Petrozavodsk;
Barabinskiy and Knybysheyskiy rayons of Novosibirskaya Oblast';
Karerskaya ASSR?areas within the boundaries [of a line drawn from] Kern'
[to) Andronovo Cora [to] Kochkoma, and also to the southeast from the rail-
road line in the Petrozavodsk Svir' sector;?
Pskovskaya Oblast'?the area to the north of the Dno Pskov ? Pechora rail
.line, with the exception of the city of Pskov and passage to it by plane and along
the railroad from Moscow through Bologoye and Dno, and from Leningrad .
through the city of Luga;
Novgorodskaya Oblast'?the area between the railroad lines Chudovo? Uglovka
on the east and Bologoye ? Dno on the south, with the exception of the city of
Novgorod and transit passage along the Moscow.? Leningrad Highway: .
Yamalo-Nenetskiy Nationarnyy Okiug?the area between the Nyda, Nadym,
and Tanlova rivers;
Komi ASSR?the area 50 kilometers in width along the railroad between
Vorkuta and Zhelezhnodorozhnyy;
Arkhangerskaya Oblast'?Leshukonskiv Rayon; the territory to the west of the
Severnaya Dvina River and the Vaga River; Soloyetskive Islands;
4Sverdlovskava, Permskaya, Chelvabinskava and Gorlovskaya ?blasts;
Udmurtskaya ASSR and Merdovskaya ASSR;
Kabardino-Balkarskaya ASSR, with the exception of the VTsSPS [All-Union
Central Council of Trade Unions] "Itkor tourist base, to which foreign tourists
are brought by auto transport along the route- Pvatigorsk Baksan TYrrivauz ?
"Itkol," and also transit passage by auto transport along the route: Ordzhonikidze ?
Narchik MineraNyye Vody;
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Volgogradskava and Astralchariskaya ?blasts?the area to the cast of the Volga
River, with the exception of the city of Astrakh.m' and passage to the city of
Astrakhan by plane landing at the airport of the Ministry of Civil Aviation;
Murmanskaya Oblast'?the area to the west of the Voron'va River and to the
north of a line from Kirovsk to Kuolavarvi, with the exception of the left bank
of the Patso-Yoki (Pasvikery) River from the Borisoglebsk GES to border'
marker No. 218; excursions to the Borisoglebsk CES (right bank of the Patso-
Yoki River) for visits by tourists from Scandinavian countries; and also of the
border point Borisoglebsk and the routes: Borisoglebsk Nikel' (by auto trans-
port), Nikel' - Murmansk (by railroad) for foreign tourists; the city of Mur-
mansk and passage to it by plane landing at the Nturmashi airport for foreigners;
?
Leningradslcaya Oblast'?the area to the west of the Volkliov River, with the
exception of the cities of Leningrad, Zelenogorsk, Gatchina, Petrokrepose, a 30-
kilometer zone around the city of Leningrad, passage by auto transport along
the highways Moscow-Leningrad and Leningrad- Vyborg- Torfyanovska;
Moscow Oblast', with the exception of the City of .Moscow, a 40 kilometer zone
around the city of Moscow, and Zagorsk, Dubna, Abraintsevo, Klin, Solnechno-
gorsk, Istra, Zvenigorod, Leninskiye Gorki, Lake Senezhskoye (within a radius
of no More than 6 kilometers) ? and Sheremeeyevo and Domodedoyo airports;
Passage in transit is permitted to the indicated places:
to.Zagorsk?along Yaroslavl' Highway;
to the Abramtsevo museum-estate?along Yaroslavl' Highway to Rvazansty and
? further through Khoekovo; -
to Dubna?along Dmitrov Highway;
to Solnechnogorsk, to Senezliskoye Lake, to Klin and to Sheremeeyevo airport?
along Leningrad Highway;
to Istra?along Volokamsk Highway;
to Zvenigorod?along the Minsk Highway to Golitsyno and further along the
Zvenigorod Highway;
to Leninskiye Gorki and to ?Domodedovo airport?along Kashira Highway;
Within the 40-kilometer zone foreigners are forbidden access to:
Dmitrovskiy, SOlnechnogorskiy, Khimkinsldy, Odintsovskiy, Noginskiy and
Shchelkovskiy rayons;
Mytishchinskiy Rayon territory west of the Moscow Canal, Lianozovo, including
Uchinskoye Reservoir;
Narofominskiy and Leninskiy rayons to the northwest of a line from Peredelk-ino
to Aprelevka. In Leninskiy Rayon, in addition, to the territory bounded by
the populated places: Ostrov, Prudischche, Bulatnikovo, Beleutoyo, and fur-
ther to the east within the boundaries of the rayon;
Balashikhinskiy, Lyubertskiy and Rarnenskiy rayons to the east of a line Nikol'-
skoye, Balashikha, Kuchino, Tomilino, Zhilino and further to the south, includ-
ing Ryazan' Highway;
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Departure by foreigners in automobiles beyond the limits of Moscow Oblast'
is permitted in transit along the Yaroslavl', Leningrad. Minsk and Simferopol'
highways, and in addition, transit to the city of is permitted along the
highway through Orel and Clukhoy;
Vladimirskaya Oblast'?area to the southwest of a line from Aleksandrov to
Kosterevo;
Kaluzhskaya Oblast'?area to the northeast of the cities of Maloyaroslavets
and Tarusa;
Kaliningradskaya Oblast';
Taman' Peninsula?area bounded by a line Temryuk ? Krymskaya, with the
exception of :the city of Novorossiysk;
Cities: Magadan, Okhotsk, Nikolayevsk-on-Amur, Kornsomask-on-Amur,
Tomsk, Omsk, Kuybyshev, Krasnoyarsk, Kaliningrad of Moscow Oblast', An-
garsk, Kirov, Saratov.
ESTONIAN SSR
The entire territory, with the exception -if the city of Tallin, of transit passage
by direct rail connection, Tallin ? Lenin l_ ad, Tallin ? Riga, and Tallin ? Pskov
via Tartu; of, transit passage of foreign tourists on "Intourist" auto transport along
the routes: Tallin ? Payde? Pyarnu ? Riga, Tallin ? Payde ? Pyrtsamaa ?
yandi ? Pyarnu ? Riga, Tallin ? Tartu ? Ryapina ? Pechory ? Pskov; of transporta-
tion of foreign tourists by scheduled aircraft of the Ministry of Civil Aviation from
the city of Tallin to the cities of Leningrad and Riga and return.
LATVIAN SSR
The entire territory, with the exception of the cities of Riga, Yurmala and
Ventspils and passage to the city of Riga by train, ship and airplane, and to
Ventspils by ship and train from Riga..
LITHUANIAN SSR
The entire territory, with the exception of the city of Viinyus and passage to
it by railroad and plane.
UKRAINIAN SSR
Volynskaya, Bovenskaya, L'voyskay a, Ternoporskaya, Zakarpatskava, Ivano-
Frankovskaya and Chernovitskaya ()blasts, with the exception of the cities: L'vov,
Uzhgorod, Rovno, Ternopol', Chernovtsy; and of transit passage: by auto trans-
port along the routes Uzhgorod ? Mukachevo ? Stryy ? L'vov Rovno ? Korets;
KPP [checkpoint} Mostiska (Shaginva village) ? L'vov; Chernovtsv ? Kamenets
Podol'skiy; Chernovtsv ? Novoselitsa ? Brichany; only by "Intourist" auto transport
along the route Brest ? Kovel' ? Lutsk ? Rovno;
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Krymskaya Oblast?the area to the east of the rail line Solenoye Ozero ?
Dzbankoy ? Simferopol' and of the automobile road Simferopol' ? Alushta; with
the exception of the cities of Dzhankoy? Simferopol' and Alushta;
The cities of Dnepropetrovsk, Nikolayev, Sevastopol' and Balaklava.
AZERBAYDZHAN SSR
The territory of Nakhichevanskava ASSR;
Area located to the west and southwest of the railroad 'Tbilisi ? Alyaty-Pristan'
(50 kilometers southwest of the city of Baku). Transit passage is permitted
along the Tbilisi ? Baku rail line.
KAZAKII SSR
Gur'yevskaya, Karagandinskaya, Kzyl-Ordinskaya, Pavlodarskaya, Semipalatin-
skaya, and Alma-Atinskaya oblasts, with the exception of the city of Alma-Ata;
Dzhambulskaya Oblast?area to the east of the Myn-Aral?Lugovov railroad;
Ural'skaya Oblast?area to the west of the Ural River;
Transit passage to the city of Alma-Ata is permitted along the railroad
city of Tashkent through Dzhambul and by plane.
KIRGIZ SSR
from the
Territory of the republic, with the exception of the city of Frunze and of
Keminskiy, Chuyskiy, Kantskiy, Sokuluskskiy and Moskovskiy rayons, and of
Oshskaya Oblast', less Batkenskiy rayon;
Transit to the city of Frunze is permitted by plane and along the railroad
from the city of Tashkent.
UZBEK SSR
Karakalpakskaya ASSR;
Areas of Surkhandar'inskaya Oblast' within the boundaries of the populated
places: Denau, Baysun, Shirabad, and Dzhar-Kurgan.
TURKMEN SSR
Areas located to the west of the junction of the boundary between the Uzbek
SSR and the Kazakh SSR and further to the south through Kizyl-Arvat and
Kara-Kala;
The area bounded by the populated places: Yerbent? Semyy Zavod ? Darvoza
and passage to it along the automobile road Ashkhabad ?Sernyy Zavod.
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APPENDIX C
Official Status of Cities With 100,000 or More Inhabitants
0= Open
X =Closed
6 7A1a3.
1941
30 Sep
1948
15 Jan
1932
22 Jun
1953
28 Aug
1957
18 Aug
1939
22 Jul
1966
Aktyubinsk
X
X
X
O
o
0
0
Alma-Ata
X
X
0
0
0
0
0
Amlizhan
x
x
X
O
o
o
o
Angarsk
*
*
0
O
o
o
x
Anzhero-Surlzhensk .
0
0
0
0
o
o
o
Arkhangel'sk
X
X
X
0
0
o
0
Armavir
0
X
X
0
0
o
o
Ashkhabad
X
X
X
O
o
0
0
Astrakhan'
0
0
0
O
0
o
0
Baku
X
x
X
O
o
-0
.-O
Barnaul
o
x
X
0
o
0
o
Belgormi
0
0
0
o
0
o
o
Belovo
0
0
O
o
o
0
BerUniki
o
x
x
x
x
x
Biysk
0
x
o
0
o
0
Blagoveshchensk....
0
X
o
0
o
o
Bobruysk
0
0
0
o
o
o
Bratsk
*
*
*
o
o
0
Bryansk
o
o
O
0
o
o
Cheboksary
0
X
0
o
o
0
Chelyabinsk
0
x
? x.
x
x
x
x
Cheremkhovo. ,
Cherepovets
0
o
0
o
X
0
o
0
0
o
o
0
o
Cherkassy
0
o
0
o
o
o
Chernigov
0
o
o
o
o
o
Chernovtsy
X
x
X
o
o
o
Chimkent
X
x
0
o
o
o
Chita
X
x
o
0
o
o
Dneprodzherzhinsk
X
x
x
0
o
o
o
Dnepropetrovsk
X
X
o
o
x
x
Donetsk
0
X
o
o
0
o
Dushanbe ,
Dzerzhinsk
x
0
x
X
o
x
o
x
o
x
0
x
Dzharnbul
X
X
o
o
o
o
Elektrostal'
0
X
x
x
x
x
Engel's
X
0
o
o
o
o
Frunze
X
X
0
o
o
o
Gomel'
0
0
o
o
o
0
Not in existence at this time.
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? SECRET
Official Status of Cities With 100,000 or More Inhabitants (Continued) -
10 May
19-11
30 Sep
19-18
15 Jan
1952
22 Jun
1933
25 Aug I 1S Aug
1957 1959
22 Jul
1960
Leninsk-Kuznetskiy
0
0
0
o
0
0
Li pet sk
.0
o
0
0
0
0
0
Lisiehansk
X
x
0
0
o
0
Lugansk
X
x
o
o
0
0
L'vov
X
x
x
x
o
0
o
Lyubertsy
o
o
0
o
0
0
Magnitogorsk
x
x
x
x
x
x
Makeyevka
x
x
0
o
o
o
Makhaelikala
o
x
o
o
o
0
Maykop
0
X
x
o
o
0
o
Melitopol'
X
x
x
0
o
o
0
Miss
x
x
x
x
x
x
Minsk
X
x
x
o
o
o
o
Mogilev
0
O
0
o
o
o
0
Moscow
0
o
0
o
o
0
o
Murmansk
X
X
x
0
o
o
o
Mytishchi
0
x
0
o
0
o
Narchik
0
o
o
0
x
x
Namangan
X
X
x
o
0
0
0
Nikolayev
X
x
x
x
x.
x--
-x
Nikopol'
X
x
x
o
o
o
o
Nizhniy Tagil
x
x
x
x
x
x
Noginsk
x
x
x
x
x
x
Noril'sk
0
o
0
x
x
x
x
Novocherkassk
0
o
0
o
o
o
Novokuznetsk
0
0
x
o
0
o
o
Novomoskovsk
0
x
x
X
0
o
o
Novorosslysk
X
x
x
0
0
o
o
Novoshakhtinsk
0
o
0
o
0
0
o
Novosibirsk
0
o
x
x
x
x
0
Odessa
X
O
O?
0
o
o
o
Omsk
.0
? x
x
x
x
x
Ordzhonikidze
0
0
0
0
0
o
o
Orekhovo-Zuyevo
0
x
x
x
x
x
x
Orel
0.
o
0
o
o
o
Orenburg
0
O
x
o
o
o
o
Orsk
0
0
o
o
o
o
o
Osh
X
x
x
o
o
o
o
Pavlodar
X
x
x
x?
x
x
x
Penza
0
o
o
o
0
0
o
Perm'
0
x
x
x
x
x
x
Pervouresk
0
x
x
x
x
x
x
Petropavlovsk
X
x
0
x
o
0
o
Petropavlovsk-Kamehat-
skiy
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Petrozavodsk
X
X
0
X
0
. SECRET
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Official Status of Cities With 100,000 or More Inhabitants (Continued)
16 May
1941
311Sep
1915
153 Ji
19.%2
22 Jun
1953
2s Aug IS Aug
10.57 1939
1
22 Jul
1966
Vladimir
0 ,
0
0
0
0 0
0
Vladivostok
X ,
X
X
X
X
X
X
Volgograd.
X -.
0
0
0
11
0
0
Vologda
0
()
0
()
()
0
. (1
Voronezh
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
'Yaroslavl'
0
. ()
X
0
0
0
0
Yerevan
X
X
N
x.-
0
0
0
ZaporoZh'ye
. X
X
X
0
0
()
0
Zhdanov.
0
X
X
0
0
0
()
Zhitomir
0
0
0
0
0
0
- 0
'Zlatoust
0
X
X
X
N
X
X
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NOR77.1 ' .,
N 0 R W A Y