Learning from the example of Denmark
Habeck: Customs should stop Russia’s sanctions tricks
4/8/2023 1:38 am
The EU has already launched several sanctions packages against Russia. But according to Economics Minister Habeck, more needs to be done in Germany to stop the circumventing of the sanctions. Suspicious trade flows would have to be checked.
According to Economics Minister Robert Habeck, the German authorities must take stricter action against companies in Germany that do business with Russia via third countries and thus circumvent EU sanctions. The topic must be tackled much more forcefully and decisively, he told the Funke media group. “Not least, we owe that to the people of Ukraine,” said Habeck.
Since the beginning of the Russian war against the neighboring country a good 13 months ago, the EU has launched ten packages of sanctions against Russia, which provide for trade restrictions and other measures. Germany could learn from Denmark, for example, when it comes to better combating the illegal circumvention of these sanctions, said Habeck.
Keep an eye on third country trade
According to Habeck, Danish customs analyze trade flows and customs data very precisely for anomalies. “If such things come up, for example a large quantity of certain goods that previously went to Russia are now suddenly to be delivered to another third country in pretty much the same quantity, that’s a reason to take a closer look.” Then the Danish customs company asks for an opinion.
“German foreign trade law also recognizes this request for information and these inspection powers. If this is used in a targeted manner, we can strengthen the joint clout of our authorities,” said Habeck. At the end of February, his house proposed concrete steps to better combat the circumvention of sanctions. “We are currently discussing this in the federal government and with our EU partners,” he said.