The Financial Crimes Investigation Service (FNTT) has denied Lithuanian Railways (LTG) a general authorisation to receive payments for the transit of sanctioned goods between mainland Russia and its Kaliningrad exclave and will look into each request on a case-by-case basis.
The FNTT says it cannot grant the general authorisation requested by LTG to receive and make payments for services from Russian and Belarusian railway operators.
“Payments involving two different countries’ business entities subject to restrictive measures create additional risks of possible improper implementation of international sanctions,” the service said.
The FNTT will continue to require a separate request for an exemption for each payment and will decide whether to grant one “after assessing the individual factual circumstances of each application”.
However, the FNTT has granted a general authorisation for payments for the transit of passengers between mainland Russia and the Kaliningrad region, pending a separate instruction.
LTG spokesman Mantas Dubauskas said that the state-owned railway company would comment on the situation later.
According to him, everything now depends on whether banks will agree to process the payments.
Lithuania’s major banks stopped handling any payments between Lithuania and Russian and Belarusian entities earlier this year.
Siauliu Bankas, which remained the only bank in the country to process such transactions, has said it will stop doing so as of September 1, except when it is necessary for humanitarian purposes or to ensure the state’s functions, adding that each situation will be looked into on a case-by-case basis.
Transport Minister Marius Skuodis said last week that payments for the transit of sanctioned goods between mainland Russia and Kaliningrad through Lithuania would continue after September 1, but admitted that there might be “challenges”.
“On its part, the government has done practically everything it could, and as far as I know, payments should proceed, though I wouldn’t rule out that certain entities may face challenges,” he said.
LTG resumed the transit of sanctioned goods between Russia and Kaliningrad on July 22 after the European Commission said in its updated guidance that a limited amount of cargo could be transported. (LRT/Business World Magazine)
