Lithuania plans to unilaterally ban a swathe of dual-use goods that may enter Russia via Belarus and potentially end up on the battlefield in Ukraine, raising pressure on the European Union to tighten restrictions targeting Moscow.
(Bloomberg) — Lithuania plans to unilaterally ban a swathe of dual-use goods that may enter Russia via Belarus and potentially end up on the battlefield in Ukraine, raising pressure on the European Union to tighten restrictions targeting Moscow.
The Baltic nation will next week unveil a ban of some 60 dual-use products that aren’t on the EU’s sanctions list, Lithuanian Economy Minister Ausrine Armonaite said in Vilnius Friday.
The products, primarily consumer electronics, can potentially transit through neighboring Belarus and be repurposed by Russia’s military, she said.
The measures, which could come into effect next month, are part of a broader EU effort to clamp down on Russia’s attempts to circumvent the bloc’s sanctions, including imposing restrictions on many goods from transiting via third countries or through Russia.
Russia has received shipments of advanced chips and integrated circuits made in the EU and allied nations via nations such as Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan, Bloomberg has reported.
“We have data suggesting that some of the sensitive goods may be used in the war in Ukraine and may end up on the battlefield,” Armonaite told reporters, saying her ministry has identified codes of 65 products that could have a military application. “We want to ensure that the territory of Lithuania is not used for this purpose.”
A Signal to the EU
EU nations bordering Russia and Belarus have seen a surge in trade with nations in central Asia, with many products remaining in or being re-exported to Russia.
Lithuania shares a 680-kilometer (423-mile) border with Belarus to the southeast and a border with the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad in the west.
The minister said she hoped the dual-use measures will eventually be adopted across the 27-member bloc. The government is also in talks with Latvia, Estonia, Finland and Norway on a regional effort. Poland this month suspended freight traffic for trucks and trailers registered in Belarus and Russia from crossing its border with Belarus.
As part of its latest sanctions package that may be approved as early as next week, the EU is set to ban many goods from transiting to third countries via Russia. The ban will extend to a list of technologies and other goods, including several types of vehicles, but not all items would be barred from traveling via Russia.
Lithuania’s restrictions would apply to third countries sending goods via its land border with Belarus. Officials are particularly concerned that a recent increase in exports to countries such as Kazakhstan, Georgia or Kyrgyzstan suggest many products transiting through Russia stay there.
The Baltic nation’s data show the scale of the trade shift. Exports of monitors and video equipment to Kazakhstan surged more than 20-fold last year from 2021, while products including radars, microphones and phones climbed more than tenfold.
The EU’s trade with Belarus has presented loopholes as member states have stalled for months in imposing sanctions against President Alexander Lukashenko for his support for Vladimir Putin — aligning restrictions imposed on Moscow with Minsk. A group of western member states are pushing for carve-outs exempting agricultural goods.
–With assistance from Alberto Nardelli.
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