Russia can transport contraband from Norway on fishing vessels
11.01.2023 - 09:20
Norway has warned that russian fishing vessels calling at ports in the north of the country may be transporting contraband electronics to russia that are subject to European sanctions.
According to the sanctions, the countries that introduced them cannot export to Russia many types of electronic and optical systems used in the production of weapons, reports Gospodarka Morska.
After the sanctions came into effect, russia tried to use “civilian” equipment for its own purposes. For example, Nikon cameras were found in russian drones, and photo radars began to disappear in some border areas of Finland – it was claimed that their optics are also used by the russians.
Currently, Norway notes that not all russian fishing vessels that enter ports in the north of the country are checked. Therefore, these vessels can be a tool for smuggling desired systems for russian federation from Europe. The list of equipment that can be transported and used by russia includes even such “innocent”-looking devices as toy drones.
As a reminder, russian fishing vessels can still enter three Norwegian ports. They are located in the north: Tromsø, Kirkenes and Botsfjord. And although Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Huytfeldt decided to check all russian fishing vessels with a capacity of more than 500 tons, some of them evade customs control.
The Barents Observer quoted Norwegian Customs Director Oystein Børmer as saying that “more than 90% of vessels” are inspected at the Botsfjord port. That is, about a tenth of this number remains outside the control limits.
The situation is better in the other two ports, because they are quite large and have separate customs. However, the mass media note that ships are often checked only at the beginning of their stay in ports, and russian seamen are not subject to restrictions on movement through cities. This means that sailors from russian federation can buy sanctioned electronics in local stores and then transfer them to ships that have already passed inspection.
The city of Kirkenes, which is located a few kilometers from the land border between Norway and russia, should be under special attention at the moment. This is the only section of the border between russian federation and a country of the Schengen zone, which remained open for citizens of russian federation with a tourist visa.
