On June 18, the Lithuanian government announced that it would be imposing bans on the transit by rail of sanctioned goods from Russia to Kaliningrad in line with illegal European Union sanctions on Russia. Not surprisingly, Russia is protesting the decision. The Russian Foreign Ministry called in the Lithuanian chargé d’affaires demanding that the ban be lifted and warning that Moscow would retaliate if it were not. The Foreign Ministry stated that Russia viewed the move as openly hostile, and that it violated Lithuania’s international legal obligations, namely the 2002 Joint Statement of the EU and the Russian Federation on Transit between the Kaliningrad Region and the rest of the Russian Federation, reported TASS.
“This decision is truly unprecedented. It is a violation of absolutely everything. We understand that this is due to the relevant decision of the European Union — to extend sanctions to transit. We also consider it illegal,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today. “The situation is really very serious, and it requires a very deep analysis before preparing any measures or any decisions. This thorough analysis will be carried out over the next few days.”
