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Ukrainian National Guard to replenish truck fleet with confiscated Russian vehicles

Russia's KAMAZ truck maker insists on return of its property worth 600 million rubles ($16.5 million) seized in Ukraine's Chernigov region

© ITAR-TASS/Mikhail Pochuyev

KHARKIV, March 18. /ITAR-TASS/. The 50 Russian trucks seized by Ukrainian ultranationalists, as well as vehicles confiscated from civilians and small businesses will be used to replenish the truck fleet of National Guard, a Ukrainian lawmaker from the Svoboda (Freedom) faction in the Ukrainian parliament said on conditions of anonymity.

“The confiscated vehicles will be handed over to National Guard,” the source said on Tuesday.

Russia's KAMAZ truck maker insists on return of its property worth 600 million rubles ($16.5 million) seized in Ukraine's Chernigov region.

The company appealed to the Russian and Kazakh Foreign Ministries and Ukraine’s law-enforcement bodies, asking to help resolve the issue, head of the KAMAZ public relations department Oleg Afanasyev told Itar-Tass on Monday.

On Tuesday, Ukrainian authorities ordered the Chernigov region governor to set up a commission to decide on KAMAZ property which is now controlled by the "Maidan" supporters.

“It comprises representatives of Ukraine's tax and customs service,” Director General of the KAMAZ Trading company Rafail Gafeyev told Tass.

"The Maidan" self-defense fighters claim they’re not foiling the sale of trucks in Ukraine but that they will not allow having them taken out of the country," Gafeyev said.

March 17, “The Maidan” fighters, threatening the use of weapons, commandeered 50 KAMAZ trucks and returned them to warehouses in the Chernigov region. The truck maker's administration had planned to move the batch to Kazakhstan. Then “The Maidan” supporters took control over the warehouses with KAMAZ property in Chernigov with 150 trucks and some 50 trailers worth some 6000 million rubles ($16.5 million).

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