Iron Curtain Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === Physical barrier === {{more citations needed section|date=March 2014}} {{Quotebox | quote = “Behind me stands a wall that encircles the free sectors of this city, part of a vast system of barriers that divides the entire continent of Europe. From the Baltic, south, those barriers cut across Germany in a gash of barbed wire, concrete, dog runs, and guard towers. Farther south, there may be no visible, no obvious wall. But there remain armed guards and checkpoints all the same{{snd}}still a restriction on the right to travel, still an instrument to impose upon ordinary men and women the will of a totalitarian state.” | source = – [[Ronald Reagan]] at the [[Tear down this wall!]] speech in 1987, which was written by [[Peter Robinson (speechwriter)|Peter Robinson]] | align = right | width = 250px | salign = right }} The Iron Curtain took physical shape in the form of border defences between the countries of western and eastern Europe. There were some of the most heavily militarised areas in the world, particularly the so-called "[[inner German border]]" – commonly known as ''die Grenze'' in German – between East and West Germany. Elsewhere along the border between West and East, the defence works resembled those on the intra-German border. During the Cold War, the border zone in Hungary started {{convert|15|km}} from the border. Citizens could only enter the area if they lived in the zone or had a passport valid for traveling out. Traffic control points and patrols enforced this regulation. Those who lived within the {{convert|15|km}} border-zone needed special permission to enter the area within {{convert|5|km}} of the border. The area was very difficult to approach and heavily fortified. In the 1950s and 1960s, a double barbed-wire fence was installed {{convert|50|m}} from the border. The space between the two fences was laden with [[land mine]]s. The minefield was later replaced with an electric signal fence (about {{convert|1|km}} from the border) and a barbed wire fence, along with guard towers and a sand strip to track border violations. Regular patrols sought to prevent escape attempts. They included cars and mounted units. Guards and dog patrol units watched the border 24/7 and were authorised to use their weapons to stop escapees. The wire fence nearest the actual border was irregularly displaced from the actual border, which was marked only by stones. Anyone attempting to escape would have to cross up to {{convert|400|m}} before they could cross the actual border. Several escape attempts failed when the escapees were stopped after crossing the outer fence.{{Clarification needed|reason=Does this apply to the inner German border or the entire Iron Curtain?|date=December 2022}} The creation of these highly militarised no-man's lands led to ''de facto'' nature reserves and created a [[wildlife corridor]] across Europe; this helped the spread of several species to new territories. Since the fall of the Iron Curtain, several initiatives are pursuing the creation of a [[European Green Belt]] nature preserve area along the Iron Curtain's former route. In fact, a [[long-distance cycling route]] along the length of the former border called the [[Iron Curtain Trail]] (ICT) exists as a project of the European Union and other associated nations. The trail is {{Convert|6800|km|abbr=on}} long and spans from [[Finland]] to [[Greece]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Iron Curtain Trail |url=http://www.ironcurtaintrail.eu/en/der_iron_curtain_trail/index.html |access-date=2013-11-16 |publisher=Ironcurtaintrail.eu}}</ref> The term "Iron Curtain" was only used for the fortified borders in Europe; it was not used for similar borders in Asia between socialist and capitalist states (these were, for a time, dubbed the [[Bamboo Curtain]]). The [[Korean Demilitarized Zone|border between North Korea and South Korea]] is very comparable to the former inner German border, particularly in its degree of militarisation, but it has never conventionally been considered part of any Iron Curtain. ==== Soviet Union ==== ===== Land border to Finland and Norway ===== [[File:Russisch-finse grens. Grenswachtpatrioulles bij slagboom, Bestanddeelnr 254-7426.jpg|thumb|right|[[Finnish Border Guard]]s at the border area in 1967]] [[File:Finland-Russia border.jpg|thumb|right|the [[Finnish-Russian border]] line]] {{Further information|Finland–Russia border#Soviet-Finnish border during the Cold War|Norway–Russia border#Cold War}} The Soviet Union built a fence along the entire border towards [[Norway]] and [[Finland]]. It is located one or a few kilometres from the border, and has automatic alarms detecting if someone climbs over it. Historian Juha Pohjonen stated in a 2005 study that people who escaped the USSR to Finland were sent back, based on a policy that was implemented [[Unilateralism|unilaterally]] by [[Urho Kekkonen|Uhro Kekkonen]] when he took office in 1956.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Finland repatriated Soviet defectors |url=https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/15746 |access-date=2023-02-09 |website=[[History News Network]]|date=15 September 2005 }}</ref> ===== Sea border of the Baltics ===== {{Further|Soviet Border Troops#Red Banner Baltic Border District|Occupation of the Baltic states}} ====== Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic ====== [[File:Endine_piirivalve_vaatlustorn_Uitru_s%C3%A4%C3%A4rel.JPG|Former Soviet [[watchtower]] at the coast of Estonia|thumb]] {{Section empty|date=January 2023}} See also the {{Interlanguage link multi|USSR border guard in Estonia|et|3=NSV_Liidu_piirivalve_Eestis}} ====== Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic ====== {{Section empty|date=January 2023}} ====== Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic ====== {{Section empty|date=January 2023}} ==== Poland ==== {{Section empty|date=January 2023}} The People's Republic of Poland was a satellite state of the Soviet Union. It bordered no western countries, but it had many ports to the baltic sea. ==== German Democratic Republic ==== [[File:Moedlareuth Museum 2002b.jpg|thumb|Preserved section of the border between [[East Germany]] and West Germany called the "Little Berlin Wall" at [[Mödlareuth]]]] [[File:Point Alpha Ostseite.jpg|thumb|Fence along the former east–west border in Germany]] {{Main articles|Inner German border}} The inner German border was marked in rural areas by double fences made of steel mesh (expanded metal) with sharp edges, while near urban areas a high concrete barrier similar to the [[Berlin Wall]] was built. The installation of the Wall in 1961 brought an end to a decade during which the divided capital of divided Germany was one of the easiest places to move west across the Iron Curtain.<ref>Keeling, Drew (2014), business-of-migration.com [http://www.business-of-migration.com/migration-processes/other-regions/berlin-wall-and-migration/ "Berlin Wall and Migration," ''Migration as a travel business'']</ref> The barrier was always a short distance inside East German territory to avoid any intrusion into Western territory. The actual borderline was marked by posts and signs and was overlooked by numerous watchtowers set behind the barrier. The strip of land on the West German side of the barrier – between the actual borderline and the barrier – was readily accessible but only at considerable personal risk, because it was patrolled by both East and West German border guards. Several villages, many historic, were destroyed as they lay too close to the border, for example [[Erlebach]]. Shooting incidents were not uncommon, and several hundred civilians and 28 East German border guards were killed between 1948 and 1981 (some may have been victims of "[[friendly fire]]" by their own side). The [[Helmstedt–Marienborn border crossing]] ({{lang-de|Grenzübergang Helmstedt-Marienborn}}), named ''Grenzübergangsstelle Marienborn'' (GÜSt) by the [[German Democratic Republic]] (GDR), was the largest and most important border crossing on the [[Inner German border]] during the [[History of Germany since 1945|division of Germany]]. Due to its geographical location, allowing for the shortest land route between [[West Germany]] and [[West Berlin]], most transit traffic to and from West Berlin used the Helmstedt-Marienborn crossing. Most travel routes from West Germany to [[German Democratic Republic|East Germany]] and [[Poland]] also used this crossing. The border crossing existed from 1945 to 1990 and was situated near the East German village of [[Marienborn]] at the edge of the [[Lappwald]]. The crossing interrupted the [[Bundesautobahn 2]] (A 2) between the junctions ''[[Helmstedt]]-Ost'' and ''[[Ostingersleben]]''. <gallery> File:Grensovergang-helmstedt-marienborn-paspoortcontrole-personenautos-04.JPG File:Grensovergang-helmstedt-marienborn-paspoortcontrole-vrachtautos.JPG File:Grensovergang-helmstedt-marienborn-lichtmast-commandotoren-brug.JPG File:Grensovergang-helmstedt-marienborn-lichtmast-02.JPG </gallery> ===== Berlin Wall ===== {{Main articles|Berlin Wall}} ==== Czechoslovakia ==== {{Further|Czechoslovak border fortifications during the Cold War|Protection of Czechoslovak borders during the Cold War}} In parts of [[Czechoslovakia]], the border strip became hundreds of meters wide, and an area of increasing restrictions was defined as the border was approached. Only people with the appropriate government permissions were allowed to get close to the border.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Cold river: the cold truth of freedom|last=Imrich, Jozef.|date=2005|publisher=Double Dragon|isbn=9781554043118|location=East Markham, Ontario|oclc=225346736}}</ref> ==== Hungary ==== The Hungarian outer fence became the first part of the Iron Curtain to be dismantled. After the border fortifications were dismantled, a section was rebuilt for a formal ceremony. On 27 June 1989, the [[foreign minister]]s of Austria and Hungary, [[Alois Mock]] and [[Gyula Horn]], ceremonially cut through the border defences separating their countries. ==== Romania ==== The number of victims that died at the Romanian border far exceeded the number of victims at the Berlin Wall.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Constantinoiu |first1=Marina |last2=Deak |first2=Istvan |title=Why were the East Germans taking the Romania route to West Germany? |url=https://www.balcanicaucaso.org/eng/Areas/Romania/Why-were-the-East-Germans-taking-the-Romania-route-to-West-Germany-180488 |access-date=2022-12-19 |website=[[Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa]] |language=it}}</ref> ==== Bulgaria ==== The Yugoslav-Bulgarian border{{efn|Present-day Serbian-Bulgarian and North Macedonian-Bulgarian border}} became closed in 1948 after the [[Tito–Stalin split]]. The area around the border was restructured, with land ownership on both sides no longer legal. Loudspeakers were installed for spreading propaganda and insults. The installations were not as impressive as the one on for example the inner-German border, but they resembled the same system.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1248760000 |title=The Balkan Route: Historical Transformations from Via Militaris to Autoput |date=2021 |others=Vladimir Aleksić, Tatjana Katić, Sandra King-Savić, Matthew Larnach, Dobrinka Parusheva, Florian Riedler, Florian Riedler, Nenad Stefanov, Nenad Stefanov |isbn=978-3-11-061856-3 |location=Berlin |oclc=1248760000}}</ref> In the GDR, there was a long time rumor that the border of Bulgaria was easier to cross than the inner German border for escaping the East Bloc.<ref>{{Cite web |title='The Bulgarian border was extremely dangerous' – DW – 04/11/2019 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/the-bulgarian-border-was-extremely-dangerous/a-48290175 |access-date=2022-12-19 |website=dw.com |language=en}}</ref> In [[Greece]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Beyond the Berlin Wall: The forgotten collapse of Bulgaria's 'wall' |date=5 November 2019 |url=https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2019/11/05/beyond-the-berlin-wall-the-forgotten-collapse-of-bulgarias-wall/}}</ref> a highly militarized area called the "Επιτηρούμενη Ζώνη" ("Surveillance Area") was created by the Greek Army along the Greek-Bulgarian border, subject to significant security-related regulations and restrictions. Inhabitants within this {{convert|25|km}} wide strip of land were forbidden to drive cars, own land bigger than {{convert|60|m2}}, and had to travel within the area with a special passport issued by Greek military authorities. Additionally, the Greek state used this area to encapsulate and monitor a non-Greek ethnic minority, the [[Pomaks]], a Muslim and Bulgarian-speaking minority which was regarded as hostile to the interests of the Greek state during the Cold War because of its familiarity with their fellow Pomaks living on the other side of the Iron Curtain.<ref>[https://www.dur.ac.uk/resources/ibru/publications/full/bsb7-2_labrianidis.pdf Lois Labrianidis, The impact of the Greek military surveillance zone on the Greek side of the Bulgarian-Greek borderlands], 1999</ref> The border was dismantled at the end of the 1990s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Breuer |first=Rayna |title=Dangerous escape: Fleeing the GDR through Bulgaria|date=2019-11-04 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/dangerous-escape-fleeing-the-gdr-through-bulgaria/a-48283254 |access-date=2022-12-19 |website=[[Deutsche Welle]] |language=en}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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