Russia has banned alcohol from three Armenian producers
Russia has once again tightened restrictions on alcohol imports from Armenia, banning the sale of several popular brands of wine and cognac. Russian media report that the decision was justified by the products’ failure to meet established requirements.
Russia has suspended the sale of alcoholic beverages from three Armenian companies; the ban applies to both wine and cognac. The decision was made by Rospotrebnadzor, which stated that the products did not meet “mandatory requirements.” The restrictions apply to Vedi-Alko CJSC, Abovyan Cognac Factory LLC, and Shahnazaryan Wine and Cognac House LLC.
Specifically, the ban applies to products such as the red semi-sweet wine “Getap Vernashen,” the white dry wine “Vedi Alko,” “Armenian 5-Star Cognac,” and “Shakhnazaryan HO” cognac. The agency stated that these manufacturers’ products do not meet “mandatory requirements,” but did not specify the exact violations in its public announcements.
This is not the first restriction on goods from Armenia in recent days. On May 20, Rosselkhoznadzor imposed restrictions on the import of flowers from Armenia, citing the need to “protect Russia’s phytosanitary well-being and export potential.”
On May 22, Rospotrebnadzor also banned the import and sale in Russia of “Jermuk” mineral water, citing excessive levels of hydrocarbonates, chlorides, and sulfates in the product.
Thus, restrictions on Armenian products in Russia are expanding to cover several categories of goods at once—from beverages to flowers—which effectively impacts a broader range of trade relations between the countries.
Russian authorities plan to sell nearly a quarter of Aeroflot’s shares to plug a hole in the federal budget, which is rapidly losing its balance. The decision on partial privatization was made against the backdrop of a growing public finance deficit.
