Problem swobodnej żeglugi przez Cieśninę Piławską i Zalew Wiślany w polsko-radzieckich i polsko-rosyjskich negocjacjach

Due to the unfavorable course of the boundary line between Poland and Russia in the area of the Vistula Lagoon and the Vistula Spit, Poland’s access to the Gdańsk Bay through the Pilava Strait has been hindered. In 1991, Polish-Soviet negotiations, aimed at agreeing on the rules of navigation through the Pilava Strait and the Vistula Lagoon, were launched. The talks ended in failure, and the Soviet side demanded that its units be granted the right to navigate through Poland’s inland waterways. It was only in 2009 that Poland signed an agreement with Russia, regulating navigation through the Vistula Lagoon; still, as follows from the interpretation by the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it did not include the Pilava Strait. Consequently, the freedom of navigation through the Vistula Lagoon continues to be dependent on the state of Polish-Russian relations.