The German government announced a violation of EU sanctions on the import of wood from Russia through third countries
Quick Look
- The German government said that imports of wood and wood products from Russia and Belarus through third countries such as Kazakhstan, China and Turkey violate EU sanctions and require tougher measures.
- There has been an increase in imports of birch plywood from Kazakhstan and China to the EU.
AI-generated summary
Imports from Russia and Belarus of wood and wood processing products, in particular plywood, through third countries are a violation of European Union (EU) sanctions and should be tightened. This statement was made by the German government in response to a corresponding request from the Bundestag (parliament) faction “Union 90/Greens”; Lenta.ru became familiar with the text of the document.
German authorities have identified Kazakhstan, China and Turkey as high-risk countries in circumventing sanctions against Russian timber. It is reported that the most vulnerable products from the point of view of compliance with the sanctions regime are birch plywood and construction wood.
“Since July 2022, the European Commission has observed a noticeable increase in birch plywood imports from Kazakhstan and China into the EU. This development cannot be explained by these countries' own forest resources, production capacity or traditional export structure,” the document emphasizes.
At the same time, the German government noted that in the case of significant processing of wood from Russia and Belarus in the territory of a third country, the finished product is considered to have been produced on the territory of that state and is not subject to sanctions.
German authorities also spoke about conducting DNA analysis and isotopic analysis of wood shipments to identify the possible country of origin. In total, since 2022, the government of the country has initiated 85 administrative cases, 14 of which resulted in fines.
