Brussels, 16/09/2013 (Agence Europe) - The additional customs measures which Russia has been applying since 14 September to road freight transport will be phased in, along the eastern border of the Federation to start with. The western border, which applies to the European Union, will not come into play until 1 December.
This new postponement gives the European technical missions extra time to reach a compromise in line with the UN Transports Routiers Internationaux (TIR) convention. Commissioner Algirdas Semeta has appealed to the Russian authorities against these additional measures. At the end of July, he argued that the new measures, including the communication of the transit itinerary, the submission of financial guarantees and the obligation for trucks to be escorted to their final destination, ran counter to the TIR convention. Thanks to his intervention with the Russian customs authorities, the entry into force of these additional measures was postponed by one month (see EUROPE 10904).
Although the Russian action is restricted to just two regions, Siberia and the Far East, the International Road Transport Union (IRU) has warned of the risk of delays on the Russian border this weekend.
Regarding the TIR issue with Russia, we urge all parties involved to sit down together to try to find a sound solution as soon as possible, said Transport Commissioner, Siim Kallas, in Vilnius on Monday 16 September. The TIR is a tried and tested system that simplifies custom transit formalities and so avoids delays and queues at the border. The Russian measures just add to the cost of trade between our countries, hampering trade and economic growth on all sides. (MD/transl.fl)