[Ralfp]

1992 Russia offered Kaliningrad to both Poland and Lithuania, but neither country was interested in a region with seriously underdeveloped economy and inhabited by Russians who wouldn’t feel either Polish or Lithuanian, nor would they speak the language.

> And if you look at the borders, it's pretty clear they were designed as a lock

Assuming you speak about Suwalki Corridor, those borders reflect pre-war borders of local counties. No mastermind planning to make it hard for Russia to make it from Belarus to Kaliningrad. In fact it was Russia who drove those lines in first place after WW2.

Only „problem” Russia would have to solve in eventual aggression is getting an army into Belarus. But they can just target the Baltics instead and strike from their own territory.

[georgecmu]

1992 Russia offered Kaliningrad to both Poland and Lithuania, but neither country was interested in a region with seriously underdeveloped economy and inhabited by Russians who wouldn’t feel either Polish or Lithuanian, nor would they speak the language.

Interesting -- I haven't heard about this. Do you know where I can find out more about this offer?

I have spent some time in the summers of 1993-1995 in Lithuania near the border with Kaliningrad on the Curonian spit. I believe the Russian fleet was still based in Klaipeda in 1994.

[vanderZwan]

> 1992 Russia offered Kaliningrad to both Poland and Lithuania, but neither country was interested in a region with seriously underdeveloped economy and inhabited by Russians who wouldn’t feel either Polish or Lithuanian, nor would they speak the language.

I can't speak for Poland, but based on what my Lithuanian ex told me a significant part of the motivation for the rejection might also have been that Lithuania didn't want to have to deal with a pro-Russian voting block derailing their newly won democracy

[saiya-jin]

That would be a modern trojan horse, smart to refuse it. Even if it may have look tempting back then (wars have been fought for meaningless land grabs before), as we see now with Ukraine it would be just inviting worst kind of problems down the line

[vanderZwan]

Forced migration was a part of the Soviet playbook for generations by then, so Poland and Lithuania (and I would guess most countries in the Soviet Union) were all too familiar with the tactic.