Belarus is circumventing EU sanctions by exporting its timber to EU countries using false documents claiming that the wood comes from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, a Belarusian investigative website revealed on Tuesday (20 December).<\/p>\n
In March 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine via Belarusian territory, the European Union banned imports of some Belarusian wood.<\/p>\n
To circumvent the sanctions, Belarus timber kept arriving to the usual clients with false documents, according to the investigative website \u201cBelarusian Investigative Centre\u201d (BIC).<\/p>\n
The scheme should have raised suspicion in the EU because it has led to a 74-fold increase of wood exports from Kazakhstan and 18,000-fold surge from Kyrgyzstan in 2022, compared to the previous year.<\/p>\n
According to the investigation, which was made in cooperation with Siena (Lithuania), Kloop (Kyrgyzstan), Vlast (Kazakhstan), Re:Baltica (Latvia), Fundacja Reporter\u00f3w (Poland) and OCCRP, the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, the scheme was in part run by former Belarusian officials.<\/p>\n
\u2018Trainloads of pellets\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n Kyrgyz companies with Belarusian links offered to supply sub-sanctioned products directly to the EU using forged documents. The Belarusian Investigative Centre learned about three such companies, one of them planning to bring \u201ctrainloads\u201d of pellets to Europe.<\/p>\n After the introduction of sanctions, a wood dealer registered in Poland continues to make direct payments to its Belarusian partner. All the while, the company claims that the wood it is importing comes from Kazakhstan.<\/p>\n Under the guise of a Polish client, BIC journalists called the Polish company and asked to buy Belarusian wood products. The sales manager confirmed that the company did have wood from Belarus, but it was soon going to run out of stock, adding that the firm had begun to work with new suppliers from Ukraine and Kazakhstan.<\/p>\n However, the government of Kazakhstan blocked exports of wood products last November to develop the local wood industry. The ban was extended twice \u2013 in summer and winter. The Kyrgyz authorities introduced similar measures.<\/p>\n BIC learned about the scheme from an email that reached their editorial office. A private Belarusian service company called Quality Standard offered its services for the re-export of goods from the EU to Belarus through Kyrgyzstan.<\/p>\n Under the guise of potential clients, BIC journalists talked to the company\u2019s manager and asked to buy Belarusian wood with certificates from Kyrgyzstan for delivery to Europe.<\/p>\n A few days later, Quality Standard offered cooperation with a counterpart in Kyrgyzstan helping Belarusian wood product suppliers obtain Kyrgyz documents for their cargo and pass EU customs.<\/p>\n EURACTIV asked the authorities of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan to comment on the investigation.<\/p>\n A Kazakh official said that his country \u2013 which is part of the Eurasian Economic Union comprising Russia, Belarus and other countries \u2013 \u201cis serious about its international commitments\u201d. While Kazakhstan does not support sanctions as a way of resolving differences, it also does not seek to assist in the circumvention of the sanctions of the EU and US sanctions against Russian and Belarusian companies, the official said.<\/p>\n The Kazakh official reminded that in order to prevent secondary sanctions on Kazakh companies, the country regularly holds consultations with the European Commission and the US administration.<\/p>\n \u201cWe urge Kazakh businesses to be careful when transacting with counterparts in Russia and Belarus and to verify sanctioned goods and doing business with individuals and companies from the sanctions list. These lists are publicly available and specific services are available to search for these goods, individuals and companies,\u201d the official added.<\/p>\n The Embassy of Kyrgyzstan did not respond to EURACTIV\u2019s invitation to comment.<\/p>\n In 2020, Belarus was ranked 9th among the world\u2019s largest suppliers of wood to the EU. The following year, world wood prices rose, and in the spring, they reached record levels.<\/p>\n By the end of 2021, Belarus had exported $2.3 billion worth of wood and wood products to Europe. This includes sawn logs and boards, plywood and chipboard, wood pellets and briquettes.<\/p>\n In the European Union, the main buyers of these Belarusian-made goods are Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany, and the Netherlands.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Belarus is circumventing EU sanctions by exporting its timber to EU countries using false documents claiming that the wood comes from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, a Belarusian investigative website revealed on Tuesday (20 December). In March 2022, following the Russian invasion … Continue reading