Ukraine bans rail transit of fertilisers from Belarus
Ukrainian Railway (UZ) intends to impose a new temporary ban for rail freight transport. This time, it is about the import and transit traffic of fertilisers from Belarus. The restriction will be implemented from 16 February until further notice.
The prohibition is aimed at Belaruskali, the Belarusian state-owned manufacturer of fertilisers. Starting from Wednesday, 16 February, this type of freight will be banned for import and transit transport by rail via Ukraine. According to the decision of the Ukrainian national railway company, the products of Belaruskali will be prohibited for moving via Ukraine to the following destinations: Slovakia, Hungary, Austria, Poland, Czechia, Romania as well as the Baltic states and the CIS countries including Russia.
It is worth noting that Belaruskali is under the sanctions of the United States and the European Union. Lithuania imposed similar restrictions for the Belarusian fertilisers in late January. As a result, the Port of Klaipeda will lose one-third of its freight traffic. Latvia and Estonia also prohibited its ports to handle the products of Belaruskali. Meanwhile, Belarus still have the only gateway for exporting its goods. It is the Russian ports on the Baltic Sea, mainly Ust-Luga. Furthermore, Belaruskali is discussing with Russia the issue of building the dedicated maritime terminal in the mentioned port.