According to Reuters, Lithuania will require that Russian and Belarusian grain transported through the port of Klaipeda be held until inspections are completed to confirm its origin, a process that could delay exports for several months.
Source : Reuters citing a representative of the Lithuanian Ministry of Agriculture
Details : The Baltic country began inspecting grain shipments from Russia and Belarus in September, saying it suspected some of the grain came from Ukrainian territories occupied by Moscow.
Starting next week, wheat, barley, sunflower seeds and corn sent for export through the Baltic seaport of Klaipeda from Russia or Belarus will not be cleared through customs until test results are received, Reuters writes.
“The analysis could take two months or longer,” the Reuters source said, adding: “If it is determined that the declared origin is false, the batch will have to be returned or destroyed.”
Since there is no laboratory in Lithuania capable of conducting the necessary tests, this has to be done abroad, which takes some time.
Exporters will cover all costs associated with the storage, analysis, return or destruction of grain, the Lithuanian official added.
Although European Union sanctions prohibit the import of Russian grain, transit through the bloc remains permitted.
Moscow has not commented on the legal status of grain harvested in regions recognized by the international community as Ukrainian.
The publication adds that the Baltic countries are seeking to stop the transit of Russian and Belarusian grain through their ports after Moscow stepped up its use of Baltic export routes in response to Ukrainian attacks on ships and infrastructure in Black Sea ports.
Russian wheat exports are about half of their usual volume, despite attempts to find alternative export routes, said Matt Ammermann, commodity risk manager at StoneX.
What preceded : It was reported that Latvia and Lithuania are considering stopping the transshipment of Russian grain through their ports – transit through these countries has increased amid attacks by Ukrainian drones on Russian ports in the Baltic Sea.
Recall: Russian grain exporters began redirecting supplies from the Black and Azov Seas to the Baltic Sea after Ukrainian attacks on port infrastructure and vessels.
Estonia has imposed a ban on the transportation of Russian and Belarusian grain through its territory in response to Russia’s blockade of grain exports from Ukraine. The security service has uncovered a scheme to legalize over UAH 60 million worth of Ukrainian grain, which the Russians illegally exported from temporarily occupied Mariupol: the heads of an Odessa company who helped sell the stolen goods were detained.
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