Cabinet presses security & defense council for measures in response to Russia's curbs on Ukrainian transit
Ukraine's government is about to initiate a meeting of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) to hammer out retaliatory measures against new trade and transit transportation limitations, which have recently been introduced by Russia, Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman said.
"We, as the government, have asked the NSDC to consider this matter and take a decision on it as soon as possible. I think the government on its part will take certain measures to ensure an adequate reaction," the prime minister said at a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
As was reported, Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a decree on January 1, 2016, stipulating that international transit road and rail shipments of goods from Ukraine's territory to Kazakhstan via Russia's territory are being conducted only from the territory of Belarus with the use of seals on the basis of the technology of the GLONASS global navigation satellite system and given the drivers have registration vouchers.
Then, on June 29, Putin extended until the end of 2017 the validity of the food embargo in relation to the countries, which had imposed sanctions against Russia, and the Ukrainian Economic Development and Trade Ministry offered in retaliation to that to extend the validity of Ukrainian mirror counter-sanctions for the same period of time.
Besides, Putin's decree of July 1, which toughens the norms of the January 1, 2016 decree on transit restrictions, was published on July 3. Now they are also spread on the transit to Kyrgyzstan, and the full ban is introduced on the transit of embargoed goods. Due to this, the Economic Development and Trade Ministry assumes a halt to commodity transit from Ukraine via Russia.
The ministry reported that the transit restrictions had affected 43 trucks and 22 railway wagons with Ukrainian commodities as of the morning of July 5.
The Ukrainian government said on July 4 that it is set to impose counter-measures immediately in retaliation to the trade war stepped up by Russia. Yet, the consideration of the retaliatory measures is still under way.