The Lithuanian Foreign Ministry supports the updated rules of the European Commission on Kaliningrad transit and undertakes to prevent violation of EU sanctions.

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The ministry noted that previous EU rules, which allowed a complete ban on the transit of sanctioned goods through the Kaliningrad region, were the most acceptable, but Lithuania supports the new interpretation published by the European Commission..

The European Union on Wednesday said Lithuania was obligated to allow the passage of sanctioned goods, with the exception of weapons, between Russia and its exclave Kaliningrad..

Following protests and threats from Moscow, the EU Commission has developed new rules for transit traffic between Russia and its Baltic Sea exclave in Kaliningrad. According to this, Russia is allowed to transport civilian goods on the sanctions list through the EU country Lithuania by rail without serious restrictions.. However, according to a document published today, road transport by Russian freight forwarders through the EU is still prohibited.. In addition, goods that can also be used for military purposes cannot be transported by rail..

The government in Moscow has previously accused Lithuania of illegally restricting the movement of goods between Russia and Kaliningrad.. The exclave around the former Konigsberg lies between EU states Lithuania and Poland. It is only about 500 kilometers from Berlin, but more than 1000 kilometers from Moscow. The subject of the dispute are goods included in the EU sanctions lists, including iron and steel products, as well as fertilizers, timber and cement..

Russia has threatened reprisals against the Baltic nation after Vilnius imposed strict restrictions on the movement of goods through its territory, mostly by rail, claiming it was simply applying EU sanctions..

Moscow demanded that Lithuania immediately lift restrictions and said it had filed a complaint with European authorities.

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“We have not had any negotiations with Russia,” EU spokesman Eric Mamer said after the guidance was made public..

The Commission stated that Lithuania, like all EU countries, is obliged to "

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Kaliningrad is about half the size of Switzerland and is home to just over a million people..