Yamal authorities may rejoice in triumph. Starting January 1, 2007 a special borderline status will be imposed on the greater part of Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. It will not be easy to access the new borderline territory. A special access from the FSB will be mandatory. Major Yamal municipalities are getting ready to become fenced-off from unwanted visitors. Last week officers from the Kurgan and Tyumen FSB Directorate visited Salekhard, Nadym, and Novy Urengoi. They had meetings with the local authorities and the regional siloviki. Before long the border patrols will receive a new task – to limit access to Yamal, soon to become a borderline territory.

The FSB has signed Resolution 278 ‘On the Borderline Zone Perimeter in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.’ Here are some quotes from it: ‘The borderline zone on the territory of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug on the sea coast of the Russian Federation should be delineated as follows:

o from the intersection point of the Vorkuta-Labytnangi railroad on the border between the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug and the Komi republic, including the railway tracks;

o the Harp village in Priuralski raion;

o the town of Labytnangi and its vicinity;

o the city of Salekhard;

o the Salekhard-Nadym highway;

o the Aksarkovo village of the Priuralsky raion;

o the Poluisky National Park;

o the city of Nadym;

o the Pravokhettinskoe village of the Nadym raion, the Pravokhettinsky-Pangody raion;

o the Pangody village of the Nadym raion

o the Pangody-Novy Urengoi railroad;

o the city of Novy Urengoi and its vicinity;

o the village of Urengoi in Purovsky raion;

o the Urengoi-Tazovsky highway until the intersection point with the perimeter of the Tazovsky raion along the perimeter of the line between the Tazovsky raion and the Krasnoselkupsky raion until it meets the Krasnoyarsk krai border.

o the islands located in Russia’s inland seas, constituent members of the Priuralsky, Yamalsky, Nadymsky, Purovsky, and Tazovsky raions.

Introduction of a special regime in Yamal didn’t come as a surprise. In Soviet times a simple Soviet citizen, let alone a foreigner, would have had difficult times trying to get inside. To get to Nadym, Urengoi, Yamburg or Tarko-Sale, one should have had an invitation on hands and a corresponding stamp in a passport. The situation changed during the perestroika. Yamal was opened. Later Yamal authorities tried hard to return ‘the state of closure.’ Governor Yuri Neelov has been lobbying this idea for ten years. He appealed to Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin, when the latter was the Security Council chief. Besides, Viktor Chernomyrdin, when being a state duma deputy from Yamal, launched a campaign to ‘review the access regulation,’ but failed to complete the task.

The idea got its second wind in 2001, when President Putin endorsed it. At first it was decided to restrict access to foreigners. Later, Governor Neelov dreamed, the principle could encompass Russian citizens too. The best way was to close the territory was to acquire the border zone status, as is the case of the Murmansk Oblast and Norilsk There it took five years.

The local authorities explain that this is dictated by the needs of industrial security of the huge gas producing territory (Yamal produces about 90% of Russia’s gas). Should an emergency occur on a gas pipeline or an oilfield, not only Russia, but also Europe will suffer. Another reason is the growing illegal drug trafficking in the region famous for its high incomes. ‘Adventurers are coming to the North in quest for an easy ruble. This has created a high unemployment rate in the region. In fact unemployment in Yamal is among the highest in the Urals Federal District. Support of the jobless is a big burden for the local budget. Often times, the Okrug doesn’t need this labor. Potential unemployed, hobos and market peddlers are coming. We don’t need such categories of people,’ a local official said.

Valery Polyakov, assistant to the federal inspector in Yamal informed our correspondent that the borderline status would come into effect on January 1, 2007. The Tyumen and Kurgan FSB Directory announced that the regulation issued by the FSB Director was forwarded to the Russian Ministry of Justice for clearance. The FSB Directorate didn’t give any information on the way the new mode will be implemented, saying only it will be made public after the regulation comes into force. An FSB officer said that special documents would be required. People with no registration will be ‘repatriated.’ Besides, special warning signs will be put at Yamal border checkpoints.

Judging by precedents created in other Russia’s border territories, it will not be easy to access Yamal. One will have to obtain a special access permit at the FSB. A request should be petitioned well in advance, explaining the purpose of the visit. The appeal will be considered within a 10-20 day period. The period of sojourn will also be limited. The FSB retains the right to deny access to persons under prosecution and to administrative regulation offenders.

Deportation of illegal visitors will be financed out of the federal budget. However neither the federal inspector nor the FSB Directorate could provide concrete information on that issue.