Entrepreneurs stop importing large batches of goods into South Ossetia

In order to bypass strict rules of Russian customs, entrepreneurs bring goods to South Ossetia in passenger cars, which led to price growth.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on February 13, South-Ossetian entrepreneurs had a meeting with Alan Tadtaev, Speaker of the Parliament, and asked him to help solve problems with the import of goods through the "Nizhny Zaramag" checkpoint on the Russian border. According to their story, heavy trucks are detained at the border, and customs officials demand to fill in a detailed declaration in electronic form; it takes time, and foodstuffs get spoiled.

While the declaration problem remains unsolved, entrepreneurs are importing goods into the republic by passenger cars. At customs, the goods transported in a passenger car are considered personal belongings or goods for personal consumption, but not a consignment, the entrepreneur Zhanna told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to entrepreneurs, due to the high expenditures on fuel for passenger cars, prices on goods are rising. "Prices for all the goods have gone up on the average by 30-50 roubles," one of the entrepreneurs told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Anatoly Bibilov, the head of South Ossetia, has assured that the authorities will solve the problem of importing goods through the Russian border. "I'll try to do it in the near future. I know all your problems, but a certain collapse has occurred. There are certain requirements of the Eurasian Customs Union; and we depend on them," Bibilov said at a meeting with entrepreneurs on February 20.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 21, 2020 at 07:18 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.