EU tightens sanctions on Belarus, impacting Polish border traffic

The European Union has introduced additional sanctions against Belarus, banning the export of goods to its territory. The new regulations, resulting from Belarus's involvement in the Ukraine conflict, significantly impact travellers and traders at the Polish border. What products are subject to the ban? Here are the details.

The European Union has tightened restrictions on Belarus, introducing a new package of sanctions to cut the country off from key goods and technologies. The new regulations, which came into force recently, are causing severe problems for travellers heading to Belarus from EU territories.

According to belsat.eu, this is already the 14th package of EU sanctions targeting the Belarusian economy for supporting Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The first signs of the new regulations have appeared at the Terespol-Brest border crossing.

Travellers attempting to export various goods from Poland to the east have encountered significant difficulties. Polish customs officers have even turned back their vehicles. — "You are practically not allowed to export anything," complained confused drivers.

These changes are caused by EU Council Regulation No 2024/1865, introduced in response to Belarus's involvement in the conflict in Ukraine. The 265-page document details the banned products, which include not only chemicals and building materials but also everyday items that could be found in travellers' car boots.

The list of bans is extensive and includes, among others, live plants, building materials, electronics, and pharmaceutical products. The ban applies only to new goods, not used personal items. The new regulations will certainly require travellers to pay more attention and take greater care when planning trips to Belarus.

According to belsat.eu, the ban on exports from the European Union to Belarus includes caviar and its substitutes, truffles and products made from them, live and dried plants, including their parts (roots, bulbs), pedigree livestock, building materials, including stone, plaster, insulation wool, peat, pipes and hoses, varnishes, paints and solvents, bricks, roof tiles, ceramic tiles, wood and cellulose products, including paper, cardboard, barrels and cooperage products.

Other items include: counting machines, including cash registers, pocket data recording devices, phones, smartphones, microphones, sound and video recording equipment, monitors and projectors, signalling devices, including fire and burglar alarms, car engines, yachts, rowing boats and canoes, photographic lenses, telescopes, compasses, altimeters, rangefinders.

The banned items also include construction timber, bidets, toilets and similar plastic products, except bathtubs, shower enclosures, sinks, paraffin, petroleum jelly, hydrogen peroxide, ammonia and some medicines, including those containing lorazepam, anti-freeze agents and ready-to-use de-icing fluids, glass balls, new tyres for buses and lorries, hand-drawn plans and sketches of buildings, as well as manuscripts, buttons, buckles and some yarns, used clothes and bed linen, radiators and air conditioners, washing machines and clothes dryers, film and photographic tape, office furniture and office electronics.