Russian and Belarusian plywood producers avoiding sanctions by using third-country companies
19/03/2025
The European Commission recently issued a sanctions alert regarding the import of plywood, highlighting a high risk of circumvention
Plywood, particularly birch plywood, is identified as a significant revenue source for Russia and Belarus. The EU has prohibited the purchase, import, or transfer of plywood and other wood products originating from these countries
To bypass these sanctions, Russian and Belarusian producers have been using third-country companies to repackage and relabel their products, often providing false or misleading documents to conceal the true origin of the goods
The alert identified the following red flags:
- Plywood made of birch
- Producer/exporter in China, Kazakhstan, Türkiye, or another country with trade links to Russia or Belarus and/or sudden, recent growth in plywood exports to the EU
- Processing operations that are not economically justified
- Illogical logistic routes
The EU Commission has warned that EU operators, whether acting intentionally or negligently, are legally liable for violating these sanctions and may face administrative and criminal penalties
References
[1] EU Warns of High Risk of Plywood Sanctions Evasion https://getfea.com/international-markets/eu-warns-of-high-risk-of-plywood-sanctions-evasion
[2] EU sanctions alert: High risk of circumvention - Import of plywood https://finance.ec.europa.eu/publications/eu-sanctions-alert-high-risk-circumvention-import-plywood_en
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As well as owning and publishing Comsure's copyrighted works, Comsure wishes to use the copyright-protected works of others. To do so, Comsure is applying for exemptions in the UK copyright law. There are certain very specific situations where Comsure is permitted to do so without seeking permission from the owner. These exemptions are in the copyright sections of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (as amended)[www.gov.UK/government/publications/copyright-acts-and-related-laws]. Many situations allow for Comsure to apply for exemptions. These include 1] Non-commercial research and private study, 2] Criticism, review and reporting of current events, 3] the copying of works in any medium as long as the use is to illustrate a point. 4] no posting is for commercial purposes [payment]. (for a full list of exemptions, please read here www.gov.uk/guidance/exceptions-to-copyright]. Concerning the exceptions, Comsure will acknowledge the work of the source author by providing a link to the source material. Comsure claims no ownership of non-Comsure content. The non-Comsure articles posted on the Comsure website are deemed important, relevant, and newsworthy to a Comsure audience (e.g. regulated financial services and professional firms [DNFSBs]). Comsure does not wish to take any credit for the publication, and the publication can be read in full in its original form if you click the articles link that always accompanies the news item. Also, Comsure does not seek any payment for highlighting these important articles. If you want any article removed, Comsure will automatically do so on a reasonable request if you email info@comsuregroup.com.