MOSCOW — The Russian government has declared the city of Norilsk off limits to foreigners without special permission, in response to fears about rising crime and threats to the local economy, officials said Thursday.
The formal closing of Norilsk in the Siberian north, home to the world's largest supply of nickel, marks the first time a major Russian city and its surrounding settlements have been off-limits to foreigners in recent years.
During the Cold War, Moscow kept many cities and regions closed to foreigners, but almost all these restrictions were lifted after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.
Norilsk is a city of about 200,000 people centered on the nickel-producing firm Norilsk Nickel. Once site of a Soviet-era labor camp, Norilsk was heavily developed after World War II and now bears a constant haze of pollution.
Gennady Klimik, spokesman for the Krasnoyarsk region around Norilsk, said the move restricting access to foreigners sought to protect the local economy.
"Norilsk is a very rich and stable city that attracts not only big business people dealing with Norilsk Nickel, but other foreigners who try to earn money in any way," he said.
"In only the first 10 months of 2001, 4,500 foreigners came to Norilsk. Twenty-three thousand Azeris already live in the city," he said. "We are not against all this, but a very difficult criminal situation has developed. It's a very complex problem. Local residents have asked us to limit the access."
Although Norilsk may prove an economic lure, it is far from an easy place to live.
It remains bitterly cold for much of the year, and ice sometimes still covers parts of its river in June.
The Russian government decreed the city off limits to foreigners on Oct. 30, although the document only came to light on Thursday.
The successor agency to the Soviet KGB will decide whether to approve individual visits by foreigners.