The clothes and personal belongings of Russian tourists were still allowed not to be confiscated at the border, although the day before there was talk of confiscating smartphones, cosmetics and other everyday items from Russians (read the details in the material “Russians will now go to popular countries without smartphones and shampoos”). This statement was made quite officially by the representative of the European Commission, Daniel Sheridan Ferri. In Russia, representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs called this measure “simply pure racism.”
“When customs or other concerned authorities implement sanctions measures, everything must be taken into account. If you cross the border with personal items or clothing that are on the prohibited list, this does not mean circumventing sanctions. This should be taken into account,” said a representative of the European Commission. However, he stated that this does not apply to cases where expensive items such as a car are involved.
“In accordance with the latest clarifications from the European Commission, entry by personal vehicle registered in Russia is prohibited. This will be regarded as illegal import,” the European official added.
Let us remind you that we are talking about a scandalous regulation from the European Commission. According to a new interpretation of sanctions legislation from the European Commission, not only cars that have already been confiscated from Russians may be subject to a ban. To the question “Can Russian citizens temporarily bring with them personal belongings listed in Appendix XXI to Art. 3i, to the European Union, for example for tourism purposes?” — The European Commission answered: “No.” As a result, items in demand among Russians such as cosmetics, suitcases, laptops, cameras and smartphones are at risk. Let us add that the same list includes leather and fur products, semi-precious and precious stones, toilet paper, shampoos and toothpastes. Read more here.
The Russian Foreign Ministry, represented by its official representative Maria Zakharova, called this initiative “pure racism.” “This is not a policy of sanctions, this is not a question of creating some additional benefit for the sinking economy of the European Union. This is racism as it is. Now it is breaking out like an abscess that was not treated for a long time and it has turned into a fistula – this is an abscess of Western racism,” said Maria Zakharova. The interim head of Russian customs, Ruslan Davydov, also called the EU ban on the import of personal belongings “utter nonsense,” adding that this decision is a demonstration of “total lawlessness” that contradicts the usual logic of customs control. “At least they did not prohibit Russian citizens from wearing trousers when crossing the border,” he added and noted that Russia does not plan to take similarly wild measures against tourists from Europe.
However, this is not the case with the deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedevcalled for the suspension of diplomatic relations with the EU. “With their decision, the European Commission showed that they consider Russian citizens to be second-class citizens. The introduction of such restrictions is a slap in the face of all residents of Russia,” he said.
For those who value a healthy lifestyle, we recommend reading: “The doctor named three habits that must be abandoned after 40 years.”< /p>