According to announcements by the customs services of the Russian Federation, TIR carnets will no longer be honored in the country as of December 1, 2013. This will cause not only significant delays in cross-border traffic but also losses for foreign carriers, including Polish ones, that are difficult to estimate.
In response to an official letter sent by Members of the European Parliament Bogusław Liberadzki and Zigmantas Balčytis, former Minister of Transport of Lithuania, which currently holds the presidency of the EU Council, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso wrote:
– The Commission has taken immediate, concrete steps to prevent the implementation of this measure and avoid its potentially harmful impact on trade. Algirdas Šemeta, Commissioner responsible for Taxation, Customs, Statistics, Audit and Anti-Fraud, has written several times to the head of the Russian Federal Customs Service, and the Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union has written to the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), condemning the illegality of the announced act and requesting its repeal. Special meetings of the Customs Code Committee in Brussels and the TIR Executive Board in Geneva were organized. The Commission has coordinated its actions with Member States and has worked in close cooperation with all stakeholders: the UNECE, the International Road Transport Union, transport associations, and other UN bodies. As a result of this international pressure, the Russian Federal Customs Service first postponed the introduction of the announced measures, and then announced that they would not be implemented for the time being, with the exception of the Ural, Siberian, Far Eastern, and Volga customs districts. However, the expiration on December 1 of the agreement between the Russian Federal Customs Service and the guarantor, the Association of International Road Carriers (ASMAP), raises new concerns regarding the application of the TIR Convention in Russia after that date.
Bogusław Liberadzki adds: – The European Commission should make every effort to ensure the free movement of goods between Poland and Russia. I am disappointed by the Commission’s failure and I hope that an agreement can be reached before December 1 to prevent losses for carriers and consumers.