Estonian customs refuted the requirement for Russians to burn luxury goods

The fact that Estonian border guards demanded that a family from Russia burn personal belongings, which they considered luxury items, was reported yesterday by TourDom. Estonian customs denied RBC's information

Estonian customs denied RBC information that Russians passing through the Russian-Estonian border are required to burn personal belongings.

The day before, the publication TourDom, citing a certain Maria, reported that border guards at the Estonian border took things from Russians and offered to burn them. As the woman said, she and her family, being residents of Latvia, were traveling from Russia with several suitcases of things, which mainly contained women’s clothing, shoes, and bags. Russian border guards let the car through calmly, but difficulties arose on the border with Estonia: the border guards assessed the items as luxury items that the family could resell in favor of carrying out a special operation in Ukraine . After that, they offered to simply burn the things, Maria said. “As a result, we had to transport them back to Russia. Mom returned with her suitcases to Moscow, and our empty car was finally allowed through to Luhamaa,” the woman noted.

The Estonian customs called this data a lie and emphasized that there is no ban on the transportation of luxury goods from Russia to Estonia. “The claim that Estonian border guards recommend that passengers burn or destroy their belongings is completely false. If the passenger is transporting goods that are prohibited due to sanctions imposed on Russia, the passenger will be informed of the sanctions applicable to the goods and will be given the opportunity to decide whether to return the sanctioned goods to Russia or transfer them to the ownership of the Estonian state in accordance with law,” the department told RBC.

It also noted that Estonian customs officers operate in accordance with applicable legal regulations and adhere to international agreements, and their main task is to ensure customs control and compliance with sanctions, and not to recommend the destruction of goods. “It is important to be accurate in the presentation of facts and not to disseminate misleading information,” the press service emphasized.

After the start of the Russian special operation, Estonia joined anti-Russian sanctions and also stopped issuing residence permits and short-term visas for study purposes to citizens of Russia and Belarus. Russians and Belarusians have also been limited in their ability to get seasonal work if they do not have a long-term national visa. Later, in September 2022, Estonia, as well as Lithuania, Latvia and Poland,  banned the entry of Russians. An exception was made for diplomats, truck drivers and citizens traveling to the EU for family or humanitarian reasons.

The Russian Foreign Ministry then noted that with such actions the EU “continues to lock the cage from the inside, violating the principles of freedom of movement that were recorded in OSCE documents.” The department promised to give a thoughtful response that would benefit Russia and its citizens, but clarified that the country would not close itself off from residents of the European Union. “Everyone who wants to visit Russia and see with their own eyes its cultural and civilizational uniqueness will have the opportunity to do so,” noted Foreign Ministry representative Maria Zakharova .

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