Marketers use it Turkey, Kazakhstan And Armenia avoid them sanctions her European Union against Russiaa tactic that violates these countries’ compliance with the European Union embargo, the Prime Minister of Latvia said today.

Kristianis Karins made the announcement after talks with his counterparts in Estonia and Lithuania, who, along with Latvia, are among the strongest supporters of sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.

“It seems quite clear that traders are finding ways to legally trade goods with, say, Turkey, Kazakhstan or Armenia, which then go to Russia because those countries are not complying with the sanctions regime,” Karins told reporters in the Estonian capital Tallinn. .

The Prime Minister of Latvia pointed to the growth of European trade with the three countries, which, according to him, was “disproportionate to what was in the past!”.

He did not provide further evidence of sanctions evasion or specify the types of goods that were allegedly being shipped.

“Close the loopholes of the law!”

Neither the Turkish and Kazakh Foreign Ministries responded immediately to requests for comment on Karins’ statements, nor the Armenian Economy Ministry.

“One (solution) is to work with these countries, get them on your side and impose sanctions. The second is to look for legislation in Europe to ensure that sanctions evasion is criminalized,” Karins stressed. “Close the loopholes of the law!”

After talks with Karins and his Lithuanian counterpart Ingrid Simonyte, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kalas stressed that a “complete ban on trade!” should be considered! with Russia in the fight against sanctions evasion.

Turkey condemned the Russian invasion and sent armed drones to Ukraine. At the same time, however, it opposes Western sanctions on Russia and maintains close ties with both Moscow and Kyiv, its Black Sea neighbors.

It also contributed to the development of trade and tourism with Russia. Some Turkish companies have bought or tried to buy Russian assets from Western partners who pulled out due to sanctions, while others maintain large assets in the country.

A senior U.S. Treasury Department sanctions official is traveling to Turkey and the Middle East this week to warn countries and businesses that they could lose access to G7 markets if they do business with entities subject to U.S. restrictions as Washington takes tough action against Russia’s attempt to evade sanctions imposed in connection with the war in Ukraine.

^{Source: APE-MEB, Reuters}