Trade from Estonia to Central Asian countries has increased significantly in recent years. Goods subject to sanctions in Russia are likely to move in large numbers through the country.
After the start of the full-scale war with Russia, Estonian trade increased mainly with Kazakhstan, but also with Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. If in 2021, before the war in Ukraine, goods worth 11 million euros were exported from Estonia to Kazakhstan, this year probably more than ten times more will be exported.
“Exports have increased mainly through Estonia, that is, goods from other EU member states reach our borders. And we also see that the export of goods to third countries, which today are subject to the sanctions imposed on Russia , has increased,” explained Marie Allikmaa, director of the Business Department of the Ministry of Economy and Communications.
Although the sanctions list also includes, for example, saplings, trees and many other safe goods moving from here, it is precisely dual-use goods, i.e. mechanical and optical devices that may be needed for both civilian and military use , which are worrying.
“Here, during our meeting last week with our Kazakh and Uzbek colleagues, we also emphasized that customs cooperation should be improved and that closer direct contacts should be created,” said Toomas Tirs, the Estonian ambassador to the countries of Central Asia.
“The goal is still to ensure that combat goods, sensitive goods, dual-purpose goods definitely do not pass through and that there is no major mediation by companies or companies from these countries,” he added.
This year, exports to Central Asian countries grew particularly quickly at the beginning of the year, before slowing down slightly starting in the summer. According to the Tax and Customs Bureau, there are many such entrepreneurs who unwittingly allow goods to pass through Central Asia to Russia. Therefore control has become more severe for them.
“We have asked our entrepreneurs to do more of their due diligence. They also have much more information about what they need to do to verify whether the trade they want to do is one that actually takes place with a Central Asian country or is known in advance so that the goods actually reach Russia,” said Külli Kurvits, head of customs formalities at the MTA.
The closure of the Finnish border with Russia has significantly increased the workload of the tax and customs office, as shipments that were previously the responsibility of Finland are now routed through Estonia.
2023-12-05 19:27:00
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