Russia's Kaliningrad puts on brave face as isolation bites

STANDING in the centre of rainy Kaliningrad, the isolated Russian exclave surrounded by Nato countries, Russian factory worker Alexander felt confident.

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Economically hit by being cutoff from its EU neighbours and physically isolated from the rest of Russia, officials and locals are putting on a brave face amid claims they are under siege from neighbours Poland and Lithuania.

The Baltic states surrounding Kaliningrad, all Nato members, have been some of Ukraine's staunchest backers since Moscow launched its offensive in February 2022.

Poland and Lithuania “want to show off, display their strength, reinforce their borders’, said Alexander, 25, who did not give his surname.

But his city is “certainly not one that surrenders’, he added, taking pride that Russia had far more weapons than its smaller neighbours.

His defiance echoes the Kremlin's relentless criticism of Nato.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin has for years accused the military alliance of breaking an apparent promise not to expand eastwards.

In June, he said Russians had been “tricked, duped on the subject of Nato’s non-expansion”,