Russia probes all Ukrainian alcohol imports
Source: Reuters
MOSCOW, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Russia's consumer rights watchdog said on Monday it was probing all alcohol imports from Ukraine, looking for banned wines from Georgia and Moldova. Gennady Onishchenko, head of the state consumer protection service, has led a crackdown on what he says is poor quality alcohol, which kills thousands of people each year in Russia. The consumer watchdog in March stopped issuing certificates clearing Georgian and Moldovan wines for sale in Russia. "We have reason to believe there is some sort of agreement between these countries -- including Ukraine, Belarus and Azerbaijan -- to help these two countries (Georgia and Moldova) enter the Russian market," Onishchenko told Russia's Channel One television station. In a separate interview with the Rossiya television station he said a doubling of wine imports from Ukraine was suspicious and that all alcohol imports, including vodka, would be probed. Food bans have become a tool in Moscow's diplomatic bag, with bans on Georgian and Moldovan wines, Georgian fruit, and disputes over meat imports holding up talks with the United States on Russia's World Trade Organisation entry.
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