MOSCOW, Mar 25 Five containers loaded with Indian steel Jindal Stainless bound for Russia were blocked for a year in the Belgian port of Antwerp, Reuters reported, citing a statement from the company.
According to a Jindal Stainless spokesman, the containers contain approximately one hundred metric tons of stainless steel. The cargo was sent in February last year, but got stuck due to EU sanctions.
As indicated by the company, stainless steel is not on the restrictive lists, so it must be cleared by customs for further shipment. The port authority forwarded the agency's request to the Belgian customs service.
Earlier this week, the Finnish YLE reported that a cargo ship carrying fertilizer, some of which was allegedly linked to a Russian under European sanctions, had been detained in the Finnish port of Kotka. Later, the country's Foreign Ministry allowed the transportation of a cargo of Russian fertilizers detained in the port.
The West has stepped up sanctions pressure on Russia because of Ukraine. President Vladimir Putin has said in the past that the policy of containing and weakening Russia is a long-term strategy for the West, and sanctions have dealt a severe blow to the entire global economy. According to him, the main goal of the West is to worsen the lives of millions of people. Moscow has repeatedly stated that Russia will solve all the problems that the West creates for it.