Armenian government denies opposition MP claim that ‘hundreds of lorries’ denied entry to Russia
An Armenian opposition MP has claimed that ‘hundreds of lorries’ loaded with fruits were returning to Armenia after being denied entry to Russia. Armenia’s Economy Ministry has denied the MP’s claims and has claimed that only four lorries carrying fruits and vegetables were denied entry to Russia in August.
MP Garnik Danielyan published a video on Saturday showing a long queue of lorries on the side of a road believed to be near the Upper Lars checkpoint between Georgia and Russia.
He claimed that lorry drivers were not given any justification as to why they were denied entry, but that ‘there is talk of some problems related to phytosanitary measures’. He said that lorries were subjected to thorough inspections by Russian border authorities.
He added that lorries transporting construction materials also faced issues crossing the border, calling it ‘unprecedented’.
Danielyan went on to say that farmers were suffering enormous losses as a result, criticising the Armenian authorities for responding to the issue ‘as always’.
‘It is obvious that the problem is not only economic, it has a political subtext’, he said.
In response, Armenian Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan published a Facebook post on Sunday vowing to disprove Danielyan’s claims.
‘From tomorrow, I will publish figures that will prove that every day a large number of trucks loaded with Armenian goods enter Russia and the panic spread by the opposition is just another attempt to spread fear among our people’, he wrote.
‘P.S. Dear Garnik, telling lies is not a good thing.’
On Monday morning, he published a post claiming that 762 lorries loaded with fruits and vegetables had entered Russia in August, and that only four of them were denied entry. In a separate post published hours later, Papoyan said that 2,427 lorries loaded with Armenian exports had entered Russia at an average of 101 lorries per day.
Armenian lorries have for years faced difficulties crossing into Russia amidst spikes of tensions between Yerevan and Moscow. Most recently, Georgia had for over a month reportedly blocked the access of Armenian lorries packed with brandy in transit to Russia, but the authorities in Armenia say the issue has been resolved.
In mid-August, RFE/RL reported that there are over 40 Armenian lorries, carrying fresh fruits, vegetables, and flowers, that have been prevented from entering Russia at Georgia’s Upper Lars border checkpoint ‘for several days’.
Arshaluys Barseghyan
