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Cargoes banned for transit to Kaliningrad will be transported by ferries — governor

The region will not face any shortage of goods, Anton Alikhanov reiterated

KALININGRAD, June 20. /TASS/. Goods that are not subject to restrictions on transit from the regions of Russia to the Kaliningrad region through Lithuania will be transported by rail in order to unload the ferries. Accordingly, ferries and ships will be used to deliver goods that have come under restrictions, governor of the Kaliningrad region Anton Alikhanov said on Monday.

"Part of the goods that did not fall under the sanctions will be redirected. Now they are often imported by ferry. By redirecting them to the railway transport we will unload even existing ferries for the so-called sanctions cargo," he said in a video message posted on his Telegram channel.

The head of the region reiterated that the region will not face any shortage of goods, the authorities have worked out all possible delivery options. He again urged the population not to buy goods for the future. "I want to urge everyone not to stock up. Remember, we stockpiled sugar last time? Well, we bought eight times more sugar daily than usual, and I think these stocks are now for many years for those who then panicked," the governor said.

Earlier, Alikhanov said that Lithuanian railways had notified the railways of the Kaliningrad region that since June 18 they had restricted the transit of a number of goods from Russian regions to the Kaliningrad region due to European sanctions. The governor noted that Lithuania's actions are illegal and violate agreements, because when the country joined the EU, it guaranteed the preservation of transit to Russia’s westernmost region through its territory.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the decision of Vilnius unprecedented and illegal. In the next few days, Russia will conduct a "deep analysis" of the situation, following which it will develop retaliatory measures, he said. Lithuania assures that it has not introduced any unilateral or additional restrictions, but only "consistently applies EU sanctions."

On Monday, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said that there is no blockade of Kaliningrad, land transit passengers and goods continues, and only the transportation of goods included in the EU sanctions lists has been stopped.

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