MOSCOW, August 16 (RIA Novosti) – Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovych on Friday discussed the “customs processing” in a telephone conversation, the Kremlin said.
Large lines of freight cars formed on Thursday on the Russian-Ukrainian border after new checks introduced at Russian customs began to delay the export of Ukrainian goods.
“The presidents discussed various aspects of bilateral cooperation, including issues relating to customs processing of cargoes on the Russian-Ukrainian border,” the Kremlin said in a terse statement.
Yanukovych’s press service said the Ukrainian leader “expressed concern over measures taking place during customs processing of cargo.”
Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov ordered his government on Thursday to resolve issues with Russia’s Customs Service that have led to the backup of Ukrainian goods on the border, according to the Ukrainian government's envoy for cooperation with Russia, Valery Muntiyan.
It was not immediately clear what exactly the new measures involve, but the Federation of Employers of Ukraine, which represents the interests of thousands of companies that together account for some 70 percent of Ukraine’s GDP, said Wednesday that Russian customs had suddenly demanded that all Ukrainian goods be unloaded and inspected at the border. The federation claimed the trade restrictions may lead to $2.5 billion worth of losses for Ukrainian firms.
Azarov wrote on Facebook on Friday that there would be no “trade wars” with Russia and that his country would do everything possible to resolve the issue.
