Russian Registered Vehicles Lost Last Window For Europe
- 20.09.2023, 8:16
It’s now impossible to travel across the land border by car.
Norway has decided to ban the entry of passenger cars registered in Russia, said State Secretary to the Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs Eivind Vad Petersson. Thus, it will become the last European country bordering the Russian Federation to take such measures.
“Like Finland, Norway will introduce restrictions on the import and use of Russian registered cars in the country. We are now studying how to do this and will soon present particular measures,” Petersson said as quoted by Nrka
Norway is not a member of the EU, but is part of the European Economic Area and is a founding member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Oslo complies with most EU sanctions against the Russian Federation.
Finland banned entry for Russian registered cars on September 16. Customs promises not to let such vehicles in even if they try to enter the country across the border with Norway since this is also considered a violation of sanctions. Russian registered vehicles located in Finland were ordered to leave the country by March 16, 2024.
According to the customs service report, 81 cars from the Russian Federation arrived at the Suomi border crossing over the weekend of September 16–17, and 37 of them were not allowed into the country.
Initially, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, banned entry for Russian registered vehicles. The authorities of the Baltic states said that such "should be confiscated" falls under confiscation in accordance with the European Commission's interpretation of the sanctions. At the same time, restrictions do not apply to the transit of cars through Lithuania to the Kaliningrad region and back.
Poland introduced similar measures on September 17. “Now no vehicle, commercial or private, registered in the Russian Federation has the right to enter Poland, regardless of whether its owner is a citizen of Russia or another country,” said Polish Minister of the Interior Mariusz Kamiński.
Earlier, the European Commission stated that entry into the EU of Russian registered vehicles would be regarded as “illegal import”, regardless of whether the vehicle is used for private or commercial purposes.