Belarus has banned selected goods of Latvian origin, including canned fish and industrial products, with its government attributing the Oct. 19 trade restriction to Latvia’s approach and rhetoric toward Belarus.
In announcing the measure, the government called Latvia’s approach “unconstructive” and its rhetoric “unfriendly.” The restriction concerns where the goods originate, rather than simply whether they enter Belarus from Latvia.
The neighbors have also disputed attempts by migrants to cross from Belarus into the European Union. Belarus denies colluding in or encouraging those attempts. The government cited Latvia’s approach and rhetoric, rather than migration, as its reason for the goods ban.
A border disruption this summer was temporary. The operator of Latvia’s border queue said departures through the Pāternieki crossing stopped July 31 because of technical problems. Queue processing resumed Aug. 4, the operator said.
