The Chamber of Commerce will survey the growing exports to Russia’s neighboring region

– If sanctions are to have an effect and contribute to weakening Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine, they must also be complied with. The increase in exports to Russia’s neighboring countries may have natural causes, but it may also be due to non-full compliance with the sanctions. Such planning should give us a better picture of the situation so that we can consider possible measures, says Minister for Aid and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell.

Sweden pushes in the circle of the European Union for more sanctions against Russia to be adopted continuously. It was a priority issue during Sweden’s EU presidency and the government continues to work to close the loopholes and ensure that sanctions are implemented in a uniform and effective manner. In order to be able to assess how to comply with the sanctions, an in-depth analysis of how trade patterns in Sweden have changed in conjunction with the increasingly widening sanctions against Russia and Belarus is required.

Today, the Chamber of Commerce has the task of analyzing the development of foreign trade and changes in trade patterns. The Chamber of Commerce is also the competent authority to examine some exceptions to penalties. The mapping aims for the government to gain in-depth knowledge of how trade patterns are changing and how the changes relate to sanctions.

The mapping should be completed in the near future so that any measures can be taken quickly.