The impact of sanctions against Russia is beginning to be felt across its logistics sector, as transport options dwindle and payment systems lose support.
A source closely tied to Europe’s forwarding and shippers community said that, while “of course” trade with Russia continued, transport operations and financial aspects of the business were “grinding to a halt”, as efforts to persuade Putin to withdraw from Ukraine ratchet up.
The source told The Loadstar: “Businesses not sanctioned have continued to trade with their European partners, but even here questions are beginning to be asked.
“How do you move goods from Russia with air, rail, road and sea facing substantial capacity reductions? The transport system, specifically to Russia, is getting very complicated, at least from the EU.”
Following discussions with Ukraine president Volodymr Zelensky, US president Joe Biden tweeted that “our sanctions are already having a devastating impact”.
For logistics, the source said, the most acute sanction to hit Russia is the decision of the EU authorities and other nations to close their airspace to Russian flights and shipping lines and logistics operators severing services to the country.
The source said the combination of sanctions and suspensions would amount to “nothing moving” to or from Russia.
Aviation consultancy IBA released figures indicating the scale of the impact, with 589 aircraft operated by Russian carriers but owned by foreign lessors affected.
Read more from the Loadster article >
