Finance Minister explains customs clearance procedures in wake of “speculations” on sanctions enforcement
In a Facebook post the Minister broke down the clearance process and explained why the customs authorities in the Black Sea port of Batumi had rejected services to a freight ship that arrived in the port on Sunday and intended to re-export oil products to Turkey. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge
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Georgian Finance Minister Lasha Khutsishvili on Monday explained procedures undertaken by professionals at customs clearances in Black Sea ports of the country in a social media post following what he called public "speculations” on the enforcement of sanctions imposed on Russia by the international community for its invasion of Ukraine.
In a Facebook post the Minister broke down the clearance process and explained why the customs authorities in the Black Sea port of Batumi had rejected services to a freight ship that arrived in the port on Sunday and intended to re-export oil products to Turkey.
Khutsishvili said freight ships entering Georgian ports first had their cargo inspected by the Maritime Agency, with both vessels and their owner companies checked for sanctions and permitted to enter the country’s seaports in case neither were subject to the sanctions.
Upon entering ports, the owner of the cargo makes a relevant application to the customs authority for import, transit, re-export or warehousing, the official noted. Cargo inspection is carried out by the customs authority within the premises of the port, while compliance of the cargo with the sanctions is also checked, he added.
"[In the case of the ship that entered the Batumi Port], [g]iven that the destination of the cargo was not the countries that imposed the sanctions (United States, United Kingdom, Japan, European Union member states) and the final destination of the cargo was Turkey - which has not imposed sanctions - there were no direct questions [remaining] about the cargo’s compliance”, he said.
“In the process of verification, the company that shipped the cargo was also checked, and it turned out to be a sanctioned one. Consequently, the customs authorities rejected services to the freight ship. The vessel [later] left the port with the cargo", Khutsishvili noted.
The Minister said cargo entering the Georgian territory by land or air was also checked through similar procedures.
Customs authorities in the Black Sea port of Batumi have rejected services to a freight ship sailing under the Turkish flag and carrying oil products from a company hit by the international community’s sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, the Revenue Service of Georgia announced on Monday.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Wednesday highlighted the Government’s support for Ukraine "from the very first days" of its defence from the Russian invasion, stressing the humanitarian aid sent to the war-torn country and the political support for Ukraine in international formats.
More than 90 operations have been suspended by the Georgian customs service in the country on suspicion of violations of sanctions imposed by the international community against Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine, Lasha Khutsishvili, the Georgian Finance Minister said on Tuesday.
The Ministry of Finance of Georgia said on Monday the information on Russia creating smuggling channels for sanctioned products using Georgian territory was “a completely baseless and absurd accusation.”
There is “not even a theoretical possibility” of Georgia being used to circumvent sanctions placed on Russia and Belarus since the start of the former’s invasion of Ukraine, Georgian Finance Minister Lasha Khutsishvili said on Monday in his rejection of TV reports on a radio transmitting device having been sent to Belarus from Georgia.
The Russian-flagged cargo ship that entered Georgia's Black Sea port of Batumi on Monday is not subject to international sanctions, the Georgian Revenue Service announced on Tuesday.
The Georgian Revenue Service on Thursday rejected as “misinformation” a story aired on Mtavari Arkhi channel and a statement made by Levan Khabeishvili, a member of the United National Movement opposition party, that alleged oil had been imported in the country in circumvention of sanctions imposed on Russia and Belarus since the start of the war in Ukraine.
An agreement on preliminary data exchange to simplify customs transit procedures between Georgian, Turkish and Azerbaijani Governments was signed on Thursday in a tripartite meeting by Levan Kakava, the Head of Georgian Revenue Service of the Ministry of Finance, Riza Turagay, the Deputy Minister of Trade of Türkiye and Shakhin Bagirov, the Acting Head of the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan, in Azerbaijan's capital of Baku.