In a statement, the company said: “Since last week’s decision we have continued discussions with the UK authorities and banks about the imposition of sanctions on our company. It had been applying what it thought UK sanctions against Russia required, which included a requirement not to work with RDZ. The decision to suspend freight services was overturned just days later after the Finish state-owned operator said it had consulted with the UK. Now, due to the sanctions, we will discontinue the service.” “During these weeks, people who have wanted to depart from Russia have had adequate time to leave. “Thus far, we have been continuing the Allegro train services according to the instructions by the relevant authorities and, hence, making sure that we can provide a safe passage to the Finnish citizens,” said Topi Simola, the rail provider’s passenger services senior vice-president. It also said that it was discontinuing freight wagon traffic, calling for all wagons to return from Russia. VR Group, the Finnish national rail operator, suspends the Allegro rail service – which carries passengers between Helsinki and St Peterburg – until further notice. “Today’s sanctions target key industries supporting Russia’s illegal invasion, including Russian Railways and defence company Kronshtadt,” the British Government said. The UK adds RDZ to its list of sanctions. Many cite ethical issues for their decision to stop using Russian rail routes. The economic impact of Russia’s actions is beginning to be felt on the railways, as exporters look to pull away from the country. The bloc had announced just days before that the operator would fall under the “Second Package” of measures, under which restrictions were placed on financial and investment activities. Russian state-owned rail operator, Russian Railways (RZD), is sanctioned by the EU. Credit: Stringer/AFP/Getty Images 27 February A Russian military vehicle is seen loaded on a train platform at the Neklinovka railway station in Russia’s southern Rostov region, which borders the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, on 23 February 2022. This would result in freight services travelling through Russia declining, as exporters and carriers opted for other modes. If these weren’t damaging enough, freight in terms of exports from Russia would dry up, as numerous international stakeholders withdrew their support. Financial transactions and the exchange of goods and services would be impacted. Other sanctions, not specifically aimed at railways, still threatened the rail industry. They meant that rail services, whilst permitted to travel through Russia, were not able to call at any stations there. However, import and export controls would have an impact on Russian rail freight. Those relating to transport were largely targeted at the country’s aviation sector. Later that evening, von der Leyen outlined the EU’s sanctions. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc would impose a “massive and targeted” package of measures, and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that the “hideous and barbaric venture must end in failure”. US President Joe Biden branded the act “premeditated” and one that would result in “catastrophic loss of life and human suffering”. There was an almost immediate international response, largely of condemnation. Preluded by months of military build-up, at around 6am Moscow time President Vladimir Putin told Russia, and the world, that his forces had embarked upon a “military operation” in the east of Ukraine in a bid to demilitarise and “de-Nazify”, in an act of self-defence. Financial markets were targeted, imports banned, and assets of some of Russia’s so-called oligarchs were frozen. In the days before Russia made its move last winter, those sanctions were being enhanced. Russia must have known that sanctions would be the chosen weapon of the West the country was already the target of them following its annexation of Crimea in 2014. In response, the EU, US, and the UK impose new sanctions, including on imports and exports, which would ultimately lead to rail operations being dragged into the crisis. In the days that followed, President Putin declares regions of east Ukraine as people’s republics, adding that orders had been given for troops to move into separatist areas. Speaking at a security conference in Munich, Germany, US Vice President Kamala Harris warns: “We have prepared, together, economic measures that will be swift, severe and united.” As the military build-up on Ukraine’s borders appears almost complete, concerns grow among Western allies that conflict is near.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |