New barriers planned for Russian grain
Translated from Lithuanian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.
At a glance
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New plan
- Latviaโs government plans to impose a 300% tariff on grain from Russia and Belarus and create mechanisms to identify potentially stolen Ukrainian grain.
- Lithuania will inspect both feed and food grain shipments from Russia and Belarus at the border, while samples from Kaliningrad are being held for testing.
- Lithuanian officials called for coordinated action by the Baltic states and said Russian or potentially stolen Ukrainian grain should not pass freely through regional ports and railways.
Latvia is preparing a 300% tariff on grain from Russia and Belarus, while Lithuania is tightening checks on shipments that could include grain stolen from Ukraine. The moves come as Baltic officials debate how to handle grain moving through their ports and rail networks.
The latest news from Latvia is welcome. It appears they have decided to take steps, because until now Latvia had no ban at all when it came to grain.
Lithuanian Agriculture Minister Kฤstutis Maลพeika welcomed the news from Latvia, saying the country had previously imposed no restrictions on grain. He said Russia could attempt to export about 1.5 million tonnes through Latvian and Lithuanian ports, based on information he said he had received from Ukrainian counterparts. Some of that grain could have been stolen from Ukraine.
Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkeviฤius said Russiaโs attacks on Ukrainian ports had made transport problems especially acute and had increased the focus on Baltic Sea ports. Nearly 2.5 million tonnes of grain have been handled through the port of Klaipฤda since the start of the year, including an estimated 47,000 tonnes of Russian grain, most of it from the Kaliningrad region.
We will not simply allow our port infrastructure and railway to be used in a way that later raises doubts, because our partners in Ukraine are watching how we act.
Lithuanian officials said the port has no legal authority to stop cargo that is not sanctioned. Transport Minister Juras Taminskas said the port and Lithuanian Railways prioritize Lithuanian grain, but European Union and World Trade Organization rules prevent them from refusing to transport grain that is not subject to sanctions.
Russian grain is not sanctioned, but that does not mean we can throw up our hands and do nothing.
Lithuania wants controls to cover food grain as well as feed grain. Maลพeika ordered the State Food and Veterinary Service to conduct origin tests on all transit grain shipments from Russia and Belarus. Samples from Kaliningrad have already been taken at the port, and the grain is being held in a warehouse while it is checked.
From Friday, not only feed grain but also food grain will be checked.
About this summary
Originally published by Delfi in Lithuanian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.
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