Do kiwi, papaya grow in Belarus? PM defends rise in supplies of exotic fruits to Russia


Belarus more than doubled the export of fruit to Russia in a year’s time.

The fact that Belarus is supplying the Russian market with the enormous amount of exotic tropical fruits cannot but sparked a massive public outcry. Although the fruit isn’t grown in the Eastern European country, the export of kiwis went up by 151%.

At the same time, the ban imposed by Russia clearly prohibits re-export, and that is exactly what Belarus is suspected of by Moscow.

The Belarusian Prime Minister claims that the fruits supplied should not be affected by sanctions.

“These products – kiwis and papayas – are not made by the countries touched by the Russian food embargo. That is why it is absolutely clear that these products are not subject to the sanctions and they enter the territory of the Republic of Belarus absolutely legally,” Andrey Kabyakou said after the session of the Council of Ministers of the Union State of Belarus and Russia in Moscow on Tuesday.

According to the Prime Minister, as Belarus and it partners are in the common customs territory, everyone has the right to opt for a better logistic chain. “If the supplier decides that from the logistical point of view it is more profitable to transport tropical products via the Belarusian customs warehouse, I can see nothing illegal about that,” state-run news agency BelTA quotes Kabyakou as saying.

Addressing critics of ‘Belarusian’ shrimps and sea fish the Belarusian Prime Minister stressed that any product subjected to a certain degree of processing inside Belarus, should be then considered as a product made in the Customs Union.

Belsat.eu

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