Georgia, Kyrgyzstan suspected of violating sanctions related to Russia

Eurasianet on August 16 cited recent investigations by iFact and RFE/RL newspapers showing signs that Georgia and Kyrgyzstan are violating sanctions related to Russia.

According to a report published by iFact, there are suspicious patterns of shipping dual-use goods (used for both civilian and military purposes) from Georgia to Russia.

In conversations with shipping companies, iFact found that there are few barriers to sending such goods to Russia, including drones and processors, items that can serve both civilian and military purposes.

Ukraine says it has found Western-origin technology in destroyed Russian military equipment. Photo: Ukrainian Defense Ministry

Investigative journalists, who backed up their investigation with analysis of trade data, acknowledged that there are inspection protocols in place to prevent illegal goods from crossing the Georgian-Russian border. However, the report added that “actual enforcement and the thoroughness of these inspections can vary.”

Courier companies are able to circumvent Georgia's restrictions by sending goods to Azerbaijan, Armenia and countries in Central Asia before shipping to Russia.

Georgian government officials have not yet commented directly on the report published by iFact on August 1. The Georgian Tax Service has disputed the report, stating that “this is not the first time that investigative journalists have made false accusations against the agency.” They added that sanctioned goods are entering Georgian territory uncontrollably and then being exported to the Russian Federation.

Georgian leaders have previously denied allegations that Tbilisi facilitated the shipment of sanctioned goods to Russia, citing a lack of conclusive evidence. “We are completely transparent,” former Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said last June.

The Caucasus nation has not joined Western countries in imposing sanctions on Russia since Moscow launched its military campaign in Ukraine in February 2022, saying such a move would be disastrous for the economy. Georgian leaders have also repeatedly said they would not allow their country to be used to circumvent sanctions imposed by Western nations.

Meanwhile, a report published by RFE/RL has raised questions about Kyrgyzstan's role as a country capable of circumventing sanctions on goods moving to Serbia and potentially Russia.

An RFE/RL investigation found that Serbia's trade with Kyrgyzstan has skyrocketed since the Russia-Ukraine conflict erupted in 2022. The investigation also revealed major discrepancies in trade data compiled by Serbian and Kyrgyz state agencies, suggesting that a large amount of goods shipped by Serbia to Kyrgyzstan are re-exported to a third country.

"Among the products shipped from Serbia to Kyrgyzstan are items on the sanctions lists of the European Union (EU) and the United States, in other words, items that Russia can use in the military industry," RFE/RL reported.

Minh Duc (According to Eurasianet)

Source: https://www.nguoiduatin.vn/gruzia-kyrgyzstan-bi-nghi-vi-pham-lenh-trung-phat-lien-quan-den-nga-204240820210818095.htm