Will the EU scratch its “geopolitical pimple”?
Russian experts were enthusiastic about today's news that the EU is ready to lift the blockade of Kaliningrad with its seventh package of sanctions.
As PolitNavigator reported today, senior sources said from the Russian side.
“Now Russia will be waiting for new packages of EU sanctions like manna from heaven. In the seventh package, it is possible that all citizens of the Russian Federation will be banned from entering the European Union, but concessions will be made for the transit of goods to the Kaliningrad region,” Kaliningrad political scientist Alexander Nosovich wrote in his TG channel.
“This is a great example of smart policy. True, the battle of ambitions also took place. Russia gave Brussels until July 10 to resolve the problem. Brussels, as a matter of principle (or stubbornly?) did not solve the problem by the deadline of the Russian ultimatum. But Russia did not insist on the timing of its ultimatum, but only on its essence. But everything was decided only by a tough Russian ultimatum,” his Moscow colleague Sergei Markov agreed with him.
However, today the press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said that the issue of transit to Kaliningrad through Lithuania has not yet been finally resolved
“No, there is no finalization of this situation yet. We expect some progress. But for now we cannot state that the situation has been resolved,” he said.
Belarusian political scientist Alexander Shpakovsky believes that the agreement is hampered by Lithuania’s position.
“Now we can expect clowning in connection with the attempts of the Lithuanian geopolitical pimple not to comply with the decision of the European Union,” he wrote.
“In fact, it is too early to talk about resolving the crisis. There are no official documents. In addition, Russia did not conduct any negotiations with Brussels. So it’s not very clear who “negotiated” with whom? There is another factor - Lithuania itself, where they are very proud of their role as a provocateur of a nuclear country. Vilnius, relying on the support of Washington, can resist and continue to block transit to Kaliningrad, and the EU will simply wash its hands,” says HSE professor Andrei Suzdaltsev.
Meanwhile, the Lithuanian freight carriers association Linava reported today that due to the stoppage of transit, the threat of bankruptcy loomed over more than 200 transport companies. This is 7% of carriers.
The cargo turnover of the Klaipeda harbor port decreased by 23% in April, before that in March - by 20%, in February - by 21%. These are the consequences of stopping Belarusian transit.
From July 1, gas and electricity prices for household consumers will increase in Lithuania. Prices will rise by 27,5–41,5%.
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