What exactly can't be taken to EU countries: European Commission bans have taken on new outlines

The focus on the cars of Russians entering Europe is a departure from the previous position, which included personal items, including smartphones and cosmetics, in the lists of bans. The European Commission updated its list of bans on September 12.

In which countries the entry of Russian cars is prohibited

The European Commission says that cars are a category of goods that can be used to circumvent existing sanctions. How, the EC does not explain. Maybe it means the possibility of exporting goods prohibited for delivery in a private car to Russia. Otherwise, the old formulations are repeated: it does not matter that the car is personal, and it does not matter what customs procedure it was imported into the EU country. As you know, before that, on September 10, the EU announced a ban on entry to Russian citizens with personal smartphones and cars, as well as toilet paper and cosmetics. The Foreign Ministry called this rule racism.

Who will not miss Russian cars?

The German authorities will not make exceptions to the sanctions prohibiting Russian citizens from entering the territory of the European Union in cars registered in Russia and with personal belongings, RBC reported, citing the response of the German customs. That is, you will not enter Germany on cars registered in Russia now.

Deputy Head of the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Jovita Neljupshene said that the country will not allow cars with Russian license plates, except when they are heading to Kaliningrad. At the same time, according to her, the restrictions will also apply to EU citizens. She added that Russians who have the right to cross the border and the following are not in Kaliningrad, can only get into the country on foot or by bus.

The State Revenue Service of Latvia also announced a ban on crossing the border on cars with Russian license plates, reports Delfi. The restriction is introduced from 18:00 local time on September 12 and is valid on the borders of Latvia with Russia and Belarus. «Persons with such vehicles will have to return to Russia or Belarus from the border crossing point. If a person refuses to comply with the instructions of the customs authority… a decision on confiscation may be made, » the message says.

Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsakhkna also said that Tallinn «intends to follow the instructions of the European Commission» and not to let Russian cars through. It is reported that Estonia, after the introduction of the entry ban, deployed the first car with Russian license plates, it was driven by a driver with dual Lithuanian citizenship and Of Russia.

But Finland has not imposed a ban on entry on cars registered in Russia at the moment. This was announced by the head of the sanctions department of the country's Foreign Ministry, Pia Sariwaara. «Cars with Russian license plates can still enter Finland. If another decision is made, we will announce it in advance, » she assured, adding that no confiscation of cars is currently envisaged.

«Experiments on humiliating Russians»

Everything that is happening has already caused a flood of jokes in social networks.

«If Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Germany are considering the confiscation of cars as a basic scenario for those entering, then why not just bring to them all the junk that has been gathering dust for a long time?», — writes Mark Nepsha.

But not everyone is in a humorous mood. Some people pay attention to the fact that the Russian authorities have not seriously and officially responded to the bans for tourists so far.

«The experiments of the European Union and other Estonians on the humiliation of Russians are of little concern to the Russian authorities, because they are directed not against those who make decisions, but against a small stratum of the Russian upper middle class. Who has money, but does not influence political decisions. In general, this whole kanselrash is an example of how the European bureaucrats made a mistake with the target audience — and for a year and a half they have been punishing exclusively their supporters inside Russia», — Sergei Starovoitov believes.

Meanwhile, bans seem to operate differently in different EU countries.

«Tourists who traveled to Germany by car really told: they were approached at the parking lot and warned that the car was being seized. Also, when I traveled to Bulgaria, I was faced with the fact that cosmetics were seized from Russian tourists at customs. Now I'm flying to a congress in Spain, a business trip, but I still won't take any perfume or jewelry. According to experience, most often everything depends on the identity of a particular customs officer,» Tatiana Ivanova, General Director of Dial—Tour, told NI.

Were the bans introduced even earlier?

At the same time, an authoritative source in the tourism industry gave «NI» the following comment on the issue of the seizure of personal belongings:

«This hype was raised by the publication of RBC. But in fact, the rules on the seizure of cars of Russians with non-diplomatic license plates have been in effect in some EU countries since 2022. In Germany, there have indeed been cases of car seizures in some lands. Other cases of seizure of personal belongings, other than cars, are generally not known. But for tourists, the current customs rules are much more important. Thus, citizens are often faced with a ban on the import of amounts of more than 10 thousand dollars per person into the EU, and it is important that each person has such an amount and that one of the family members does not carry the entire amount. Also, the export of euros is prohibited in EU countries. These rules should be taken into account first of all.»

Meanwhile, the German customs sent the following response to RBC's request: goods that cannot be imported into the EU may be detained or confiscated at the border, and subsequently they may be put into processing. At the same time, checks at customs points will be carried out «with a risk-oriented approach», that is, seizures will be selective. The German customs also stressed that these measures have been in effect since the eighth package of EU sanctions came into force, it was introduced in October 2022. In the summer of this year, several Russians' cars were arrested in Germany, and on September 4, the Russian embassy in Berlin warned Russian citizens about cases of car seizures.

At the same time, it is interesting that according to the customs, EU citizens, their family members and European diplomats can purchase «sanctioned» goods in the Russian Federation for personal needs, that is, Russian customs officers have not introduced any reverse measures against EU citizens.

«I treat all these prohibitions as nonsense. I consider any prohibitions on the principle of a passport, as well as on the color of the skin, to be contrary to human rights, » political analyst Alexander Kynev told NI. — I do not remember such a thing in history that personal belongings were taken away at the border. And all this strongly contradicts the declared European values, which in words put personal human rights above all in a united Europe.»

«It is unlikely that anyone would want to travel for the purpose of recreation or tourism to countries where the dignity of the citizens of our country is being humiliated, » said Olga Sanaeva, vice president of the Russian Union of Tourism Industry.

As you know, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the measures taken by the EU «extraordinary from the point of view of common sense.» At the same time, he said that the Russian Federation will not «fall to such a level» and introduce mirror restrictions.

The European Commission says that cars are a category of goods that can be used to circumvent existing sanctions. How, the EC does not explain. Maybe it means the possibility of exporting goods prohibited for delivery in a private car to Russia. Otherwise, the previous formulations are repeated: it does not matter that the car is personal, and it does not matter what customs procedure it was imported into the EU country. As you know, before that, on September 10, the EU announced a ban on entry to Russian citizens with personal smartphones and cars, as well as toilet paper and cosmetics. The Foreign Ministry called this rule racism.

The deputy head of the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jovita Neljupshene, said that the country will not allow cars with Russian license plates, except when they are heading to Kaliningrad. At the same time, according to her, the restrictions will also apply to EU citizens. She added that Russians who have the right to cross the border and are following are not in Kaliningrad, can only get into the country on foot or by bus.

The State Revenue Service of Latvia also announced a ban on crossing the border on cars with Russian license plates, Delfi reports. The restriction is introduced from 18:00 local time on September 12 and is valid on the borders of Latvia with Russia and Belarus. «Persons with such vehicles will have to return to Russia or Belarus from the border checkpoint. If a person refuses to comply with the instructions of the customs authority… a decision on confiscation may be made, » the message says.

«If Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Germany are considering the confiscation of cars as a basic scenario for those entering, then why not just bring to them all the junk that has been gathering dust for a long time?» writes Mark Nepsha.

«The experiments of the European Union and other Estonians on the humiliation of Russians are of little concern to the Russian authorities, because they are directed not against those who make decisions, but against a small stratum of the Russian upper middle class. Who has money, but does not influence political decisions. In general, this whole kanselrash is an example of how the European bureaucrats made a mistake with the target audience — and for a year and a half they have been punishing exclusively their supporters inside Russia, » Sergei Starovoitov believes.

«This hype was raised by the publication of RBC. But in fact, the rules on the seizure of cars of Russians with non-diplomatic license plates have been in effect in some EU countries since 2022. In Germany, there have indeed been cases of car seizures in some lands. Other cases of seizure of personal belongings, other than cars, are generally not known. But for tourists, the current customs rules are much more important. Thus, citizens often face a ban on the import of amounts of more than 10 thousand dollars per person into the EU, and it is important that each person has such an amount and that one of the family members does not carry the entire amount. Also, the export of euros is prohibited in EU countries. These rules should be taken into account first of all.»

Irina Mishina