Ukraine's parliament urges partners to impose full ban on trade with Russia, Belarus

The Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, has adopted an appeal to the governments of Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, urging them to initiate a complete ban on trade and the transit of goods with Russia and Belarus.

According to an Ukrinform correspondent, 257 lawmakers supported the legislative initiative, No. 14324, at a parliament meeting on Wednesday.

The authors of the document stressed that despite sanctions already in place, the EU's trade with Russia and Belarus remains a significant source of income for those regimes, helping finance their defense industry.

The initiators of the resolution noted that a complete halt to trade with Russia and Belarus would be an important investment in the national and regional security of Poland and the Baltic states.

At the same time, lawmakers stressed that depriving Russia and Belarus of the logistics hub currently represented by Poland and the Baltic states for trade with the EU would deal an effective blow to the financing of the aggressor's military-industrial complex.

In this context, the Ukrainian parliament called on the Council of Ministers of Poland and the governments of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to initiate a complete ban on export-import operations for legal entities – including trade and the transit of goods – with Russia and Belarus, and to seek support from the European Union for introducing the relevant restrictions in upcoming sanctions packages.

It is expected that the introduction of a total economic embargo on the eastern borders of the European Union would set a clear example for partner countries – both within the EU and across the democratic world – and significantly help Ukrainians withstand their struggle for survival.

As previously reported, trade turnover between the European Union and Russia fell to its lowest level at the end of 2025, effectively stripping Russia of its status as one of the bloc's key trading partners.