Closed city


A closed city or closed town is a settlement where travel or residency restrictions are applied. Historically, the construction of closed cities became increasingly common in the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, they remain widespread in Russia and some of the other post-Soviet countries. In modern Russia, closed cities are designated as "closed administrative–territorial formations".

Structure and operations

Closed cities are sometimes represented only on classified maps that are not available to the general public.
Sometimes, closed cities are indicated obliquely as a nearby insignificant village, with the name of the stop serving the closed city made equivocal or misleading. For mail delivery, a closed city is usually named as the nearest large city and a special postcode, for example, Arzamas‑16, Chelyabinsk‑65. The actual settlement can be rather distant from its namesakes; for instance, Sarov, designated Arzamas-16, is in the federal republic of Mordovia, whereas Arzamas is in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast. People not living in a closed city were subject to document checks and security checkpoints, and explicit permission was required for them to visit. To relocate to a closed city, one would need security clearance by the organization running it, such as the KGB in Soviet closed cities.
Closed cities may be guarded by a security perimeter with barbed wire and towers. The very fact of such a city's existence was often classified, and residents were expected not to divulge their place of residence to outsiders. This lack of freedom was often compensated by better housing conditions and a better choice of goods in retail trade than elsewhere in the country.

In the Soviet Union

Closed cities were established in the Soviet Union from the late 1940s onwards under the euphemistic name of "post boxes", referring to the practice of addressing post to them via mailboxes in other cities. They fell into two distinct categories.
  1. The first category comprised relatively small communities with sensitive military, industrial, or scientific facilities, such as arms plants or nuclear research sites. Examples are the modern towns of Ozyorsk, [Chelyabinsk Oblast|Ozyorsk] with a plutonium production plant, and Sillamäe, the site of a uranium enrichment facility. Even Soviet citizens were not allowed access to these places without proper authorization. In addition to this, some bigger cities were closed for unauthorized access to foreigners, while they were freely accessible to Soviet citizens. These included cities like Perm, a center for Soviet artillery, munitions, and also aircraft engines production, and Vladivostok, the headquarters and primary base of the Soviet Pacific Fleet.
  2. The second category consisted of border cities, which were closed for security purposes. Comparable closed areas existed elsewhere in the Eastern bloc; a substantial area along the inner German border and the border between West Germany and Czechoslovakia was placed under similar restrictions. Citizens were required to have special permits to enter such areas.
The locations of the first category of closed cities were chosen for their geographical characteristics. They were often established in remote places deep in the Urals and Siberia, out of reach of enemy bombers. They were built close to rivers and lakes that were used to provide the large amounts of water needed for heavy industry and nuclear technology. Existing civilian settlements in the vicinity were often used as sources of construction labour. Although the closure of cities originated as a strictly temporary measure that was to be normalized under more favorable conditions, in practice the closed cities took on a life of their own and became a notable institutional feature of the Soviet system.
Any movement to and from closed areas was tightly controlled. Foreigners were prohibited from entering them and local citizens were under stringent restrictions. They had to have special permission to travel there or leave, and anyone seeking residency was required to undergo vetting by the NKVD and its successor agencies. Access to some closed cities was physically enforced by surrounding them with barbed wire fences monitored by armed guards.

In post-Soviet countries

Russia

Russia has the largest number of closed cities globally. The policy governing these cities underwent significant changes in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The adoption of a new constitution for the Russian Federation in 1993 prompted substantial reforms to the status of closed cities, which were subsequently renamed "closed administrative-territorial formations". Municipally, all such entities have the status of urban okrugs, as mandated by federal law.
There are 44 publicly acknowledged closed cities in Russia with a total population of approximately 1.5 million people. Seventy-five percent are administered by the Defence [Ministry of the Russian Federation|Russian Ministry of Defense], with the remainder under the administration of Rosatom. It is believed that about 15 additional closed cities exist, but their names and locations have not been publicly disclosed by the Russian government.
Some Russian closed cities are open to foreign investment, but entry for foreigners requires a permit. An example of international cooperation in these cities is the Nuclear Cities Initiative , a joint effort of the United States National Nuclear Security Administration and Minatom, which involves, in part, the cities of Sarov, Snezhinsk, and Zheleznogorsk.
The number of closed cities has been significantly reduced since the mid-1990s. However, on 30 October 2001, foreign travel was restricted without exception in the northern cities of Norilsk, Talnakh, Kayerkan, Dudinka, and Igarka. Russian and Belarusian citizens visiting these cities are not required to have permits; however, local courts have been known to deport Belarusian citizens.
The number of closed cities in Russia is defined by government decree. The reasons for restrictions vary. These cities include:
Altai Krai
Amur Oblast
Arkhangelsk Oblast
Astrakhan Oblast
Republic of Bashkortostan
  • Mezhgoryeformerly known as Ufa-105 and Beloretsk-15, home to the 129th Directorate of strategic subjects' technical supply and maintenance.
Chelyabinsk Oblast
File:SnezhinskHousesPobedaStreet.jpg|thumb|A street in Snezhinsk, a closed town in Russia's Chelyabinsk Oblast, 2006
  • Lokomotivny
  • Ozyorskformerly known as Chelyabinsk-65 and Chelyabinsk-40, nuclear material processing and recycling plant.
  • Snezhinskformerly known as Chelyabinsk-70, site of one of the two major Russian Federal Nuclear Centers.
  • Tryokhgornyformerly known as Zlatoust-36, site of development of parts and machinery for atomic stations and weaponry.
Kamchatka Krai
  • Vilyuchinskformerly known as Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky-50, base of a squadron of submarines from the Russian Pacific Fleet, also involved in the production of nuclear submarines.
Kirov Oblast
Krasnoyarsk Krai
Moscow Oblast
Murmansk Oblast
File:Дом-радуга.jpg|thumb|A view of Snezhnogorsk, a closed town in Russia's Murmansk Oblast, 2008
Nizhny Novgorod Oblast
File:SarovskyMonasteryUspenskySobor.jpg|thumb|A view of the Sarov Monastery in 1904 in Sarov, which was a regular city in the Russian Empire at the time. It became a closed city in the Soviet Union in 1946, and has remained a closed city in the Russian Federation since 1991.
  • Sarovformerly known as Arzamas-16
Orenburg Oblast
Penza Oblast
Perm Krai
File:Cultural center in closed town Zvezdniy.jpg|thumb|A cultural centre in Zvyozdny, a closed "urban-type settlement" in Russia's Perm Krai, 2010
Primorsky Krai
  • Fokinoformerly known as Shkotovo-17.
Pskov Oblast
Saratov Oblast
Sverdlovsk Oblast
Tomsk Oblast
File:Seversk Kurchatova.jpg|thumb|A view of Seversk, a closed city in Russia's Tomsk Oblast, 2006
Tver Oblast
Vladimir Oblast
Zabaykalsky Krai
  • Gornyformerly known as Chita-46.

    Non-ZATO restricted territories

There is a list of territories within Russia that do not have closed-city status but require special permits for foreigners to visit. The largest locality within such territory is the city of Norilsk.

Estonia

There were two closed cities in Estonia: Sillamäe and Paldiski. As with all the other industrial cities, their population was mainly Russian-speaking. Sillamäe was the site for a chemical factory that produced fuel rods and nuclear materials for the Soviet nuclear power plants and nuclear weapon facilities, while Paldiski was home to a Soviet Navy nuclear submarine training centre. Sillamäe was closed until Estonia regained its independence in 1991; Paldiski remained closed until 1994, when the last Russian warship left.
Tartu, home to Raadi Airfield, was partially closed. Foreign academics could visit the University of Tartu, but had to sleep elsewhere.

Kazakhstan

  • Baikonur, a town close to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, which is rented and administered by Russia. Non-resident visitors will need pre-approval from the Russian authorities to visit both the town of Baikonur itself and the Cosmodrome. Note that said approval is completely separate from just having a Russian visa. Some tourism organisations in Kazakhstan provide services in organising trips to visit Baikonur and the museums contained there.
  • Priozersk, Kazakhstan
  • Kurchatov, Kazakhstana former closed city that was known by its postal code, Semipalatinsk-21.

    Kyrgyzstan

  • Mailuu-Suu, Jalal-Abad Region, a formerly closed uranium mining town, once known as "Mailbox 200".

    Latvia

  • Karosta, a former Russian and Soviet naval base.
  • Skrunda-1, a former Soviet communications base. Currently used by the Latvian Armed Forces as of 2022.

    Moldova

Transnistria

has one partially closed city: the village of Cobasna, which is under the control of the unrecognized state of Transnistria internationally recognized as part of Moldova. The village, on the left bank of the Dniester river, contains a large Soviet-era ammunition depot guarded by Russian troops. Only the Transnistrian and Russian authorities have detailed information about this depot.

Ukraine

had eighteen closed cities, including:

Albania

During the period of communist rule in Albania, the towns of Çorovodë and Qyteti Stalin were closed cities with a military airport, military industry and other critical war infrastructure.

Australia

  • Arnhem Land is a historical region of the Northern Territory which requires permits for access to non-Aboriginal individuals beyond public roads.
  • Puckapunyal is a restricted-access town in a military area in Victoria, home to some 250 families.

    Canada

  • Ralston, Alberta is a closed village located in CFB Suffield.

    China

  • No. 404 Factory of China National Nuclear Corporation, then the Ministry of Nuclear Industry, in the Gobi desert in the western part of Gansu, is a closed town often called the nuclear town. Built in 1958, it is China's biggest nuclear industry base. China built its first military nuclear reactor there and 80% of the core parts for China's nuclear bombs were produced there. Until the 1980s, the whole town was closed to outsiders. A nuclear accident happened in 1969, involving a leak. The name "mine area of Gansu" was used for secrecy. In 2007, most residents were moved to nearby Jiayuguan City.
  • Some remote areas in China, such as Datong Hui and Tu Autonomous County, Huangzhong County, and Huangyuan County around Xining, the capital of Qinghai, maintain travel restrictions for foreigners. A foreigner must apply for an alien travel document in advance, and report their accommodation to local police within 24 hours after entering the area.

    Germany

  • Riems, Germany, an island in the Bay of Greifswald, is home to the oldest virological research institution in the world and is closed to the public. Quarantine stables and laboratories have a high level of security. This means employees and visitors to the complex must change their clothes and shower when entering and exiting.

    Hong Kong

The Frontier Closed Area is a restricted zone along the northern border of Hong Kong, serving as a buffer between the closed border and the rest of the territory. Access to this area requires a Closed Area Permit. From 1951 to 2012, the FCA encompassed an area of 28 square kilometres, containing numerous villages. Following several stages of reduction, by 2016, the border town of Sha Tau Kok remained as the sole settlement within the FCA.

South Korea (ROK)

Within the Korean Demilitarized Zone between North Korea and South Korea are two "peace villages" : Daeseong-dong and Kijŏng-dong. Access by non-residents to Daeseong-dong requires a military escort, while Kijŏng-dong is not accessible to visitors.

North Korea (DPRK)

The Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center is within a closed city with checkpoint access.

Mexico

Between 1957 and 1962, approximately one-third of the United States was closed to Soviet citizens. Only seven states were accessible in their entirety: Oregon, Wyoming, Utah, North Carolina, Arkansas, Vermont, and Mississippi.

In popular culture

The 2020 film Tenet prominently features a fictional Soviet-era closed city in Siberia called Stalsk-12.