28 Apr 2023 14:20

Ukraine and Moldova agree to cancel customs and border control of cargo at Reni station

MOSCOW. April 28 (Interfax) - Ukraine and Moldova have agreed to simplify control procedures for cargo transit by rail, including the cancellation of control by Ukraine's customs and border authorities at the Reni station and the non-stop transit of freight trains through Ukraine between the Frikatsei-Etulia and Reni-Giurgiulesti border crossings.

A protocol amending the Ukraine-Moldova March 20, 1993 agreement on railway transport operations was signed by Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Kubrakov and Moldovan Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development Lilia Dabiga at a meeting held by video link, Ukrainian media said on Thursday, citing Ukraine's Ministry for Restoration.

"The protocol envisages simplifying control procedures for cargo transit by rail with a point of departure and a point of destination in Ukraine or Moldova, or when a point of departure or a point of destination is located in the territory of a third country, for instance Romania. In other words, it permits non-stop transit through Ukraine between the Frikatsei-Etulia and Reni-Giurgiulesti border crossings, a step that will help increase the amount of cargo transported by rail," the ministry said on social media.

"The protocol envisages cancelling control by Ukraine's customs and border authorities at the Reni station. The proposed changes will help reduce the time of goods transportation from/to the Giurgiulesti port complex or Romania and will positively impact the end price of goods exported/imported by beneficiaries from Moldova, also cutting transport costs," the Moldovan Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development said in a statement.

These changes are key to the further development of the entire Danube port cluster, as there is currently no direct route between the railway station that services the Reni Commercial Sea Port and Ukraine's railroads, because all rail traffic transits Moldova, including through the the Frikatsei-Etulia and Reni-Giurgiulesti border crossings.

On March 22, cargo traffic also resumed at the Berezine-Basarabeasca railway section, which is the shortest route to the Reni, Galati and Giurgiulesti ports.