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April 18, 2022

Andrew Campbell 

Truckers from Russia and Belarus were barred from transporting goods within the European Union (EU) beginning April 16. Vehicles with Russian or Belarussian license plates that are used for international freight will be unable to transport goods across EU territory. Russian and Belarusian truck drivers were stuck in a massive line near the Kukuryk-Kozlovichi border crossing in Poland just hours before a ban on their vehicles went into effect.

Except for vehicles transporting food, medicine, mail, or energy, all Russian and Belarussian trucks are prohibited. Russian and Belarussian trucks had until the end of April 16 to leave the EU. Due to the trucks being backed up for kilometers, thousands of vehicles are at risk of not crossing the border in time. A wait time of up to 56 hours was reported at one checkpoint. 

Despite the fact that the deadline expired at midnight on April 16, Poland's border and customs authorities are still processing Russian and Belarussian trucks that had to leave the EU. Belarus imposed a ban on EU-registered trucks on April 15 in retaliation.