Latvia: Luxury cars exported to Russia via Belarus: report

A major loophole in EU sanctions against Russia is being exploited via Belarus, evidenced by a luxury car traffic jam at the Latvia-Belarus border, LSM reports. Although luxury car exports to Russia are banned, they are allowed to Belarus, resulting in a 50-fold increase in car exports to Belarus via Latvia. This suggests that many high-end vehicles are likely destined for Russia, circumventing sanctions. Latvian customs officers face challenges in verifying the true destination of the cars, leading to long border waits and highlighting the inefficacy of the current sanctions regime. Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze called for aligning sanctions against Russia and Belarus to solve the problem.