Belarus and Russia threaten Ukraine with sanctions

The Customs Union may introduce restrictions on shipments of goods from Ukraine.

The controlling agencies are concerned with the alleged decrease in the safety control level, Interfax reports.

“With the Belarusian colleague we are very worried about the situation in Ukraine, and we do not rule out that we may introduce restrictions on imports of products of high veterinary and sanitary risk from this country”, - the head of Russian Agricultural Control Institution Sergei Dankvert said on the outcomes of the meeting with the head of Belarus veterinary service Jury Pivavarchyk in Bransk and phone negotiations with the deputy minister for agricultural policy of Ukraine Ivan Bisiuk.

Restrictions may also apply to transit shipments, he added.

According to him, the conditions, in which Ukrainian experts are operating, cause concern and doubts of their competence. It is especially urgent, because the cases of African pig plague were registered in the country.

Sergei Dankvert pointed out that cooperation in veterinary medicine and sanitary to a large part is based on trust between departments. “If the operating conditions of the Ukrainian service do not improve in short term and even more so if there is a change in its management, this will have certain consequences for the business relations that we have established in the recent years, - he said. – They have not always been cloudless, but Ukrainian colleagues tried to work the way so that trade between our countries would develop”.

He claimed that types of products, the shipments of which may be restricted, will be determined by a monitoring. “The existence of African pig plague in the country does not give optimism”, - he said.

Speaking of the meeting with Pivavarchyk he reported that they agreed to carry out joint monitoring of the epizootic in bordering territories of Bransk and Homiel regions.