Goods worth at least $1 billion bought by companies in Armenia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan from their partners in the European Union have disappeared while crossing Russia in what Western officials are calling "ghost trade" aimed at assisting Moscow’s wartime economy, the Financial Times reported on May 10. The newspaper said that half of $2 billion worth of "sensitive" goods in transit bound for the countries, which are active Russian trading partners as members of the Eurasian Economic Union, went missing. The EU and the United States have sanctioned thousands of entities and individuals in Russia since Moscow launched its ongoing invasion of Ukraine, forcing Russia to find new trading opportunities. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Russian Service, click here.
EU Goods Worth $1 Billion In Transit Through Russia Fail To Reach Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan
A border crossing point between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan (file photo)