As the Government slaps tariffs on Russian imports over the war in Ukraine, it has conspicuously omitted a close Putin ally being targeted by our Western partners
A Russian ally which has acted as a staging post for the Ukraine invasion has been left out of New Zealand’s latest round of trade sanctions.
It's a decision branded "inexplicable" by the National Party.
On Wednesday, the Government announced it would apply 35 percent tariffs to all Russian imports while also expanding current export controls to cover a wider range of products.
However, Belarus was notably excluded from the tariff hike despite the role it has played in enabling Vladimir Putin to wage war.
Putin began massing troops in Belarus last year, and Russian troops moved from the country towards Kyiv when the invasion began in February.
In late February, missiles launched from Belarus reportedly hit a civilian airport in northern Ukraine, while the country’s authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko has previously indicated Belarusian troops could take part in Russia’s war against Ukraine if needed.
Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union have all hiked tariffs on imports from Belarus, while the United States has indicated it will follow suit.
While the country accounted for just $14.6 million in imports to New Zealand in 2021, its state-owned company Belaruskali is the world’s second-largest producer of a potassium fertiliser, potash, used to provide nutrients to crops.
New Zealand received just under $10m in fertiliser imports from Belarus last year, compared with $12.8m from Russia.
The EU has specifically banned imports of Belarusian potash, while the US had previously implemented sanctions against Belaruskali over the Lukashenko government’s “blatant disregard for international norms and the wellbeing of its own citizens".
A spokesman for fertiliser company Ravensdown told Newsroom it would not be affected by any tariff hike on Belarus, as it now sourced its potash from Canada.
"It's a very comprehensive splitting of hairs to try and get some kind of excuse for not including Belarus – they are without a doubt the strongest enabler of aggression into Ukraine." – Gerry Brownlee, National Party
A spokesman for Trade and Export Growth Minister Damien O’Connor told Newsroom the Government was keeping the possibility of further measures under review, but had not decided to extend further sanctions to Belarus for the time being.
“While Belarus is clearly supporting Russia’s aggression, it has not sent any troops into Ukraine.”
Asked specifically whether the continuity of supply of potash was a factor in the decision to exclude Belarus from the tariff hikes, the spokesman said “a number of factors are constantly being considered”.
The Government had already banned more than 80 Belarusian political and military leaders from travelling to New Zealand “to signify its condemnation of the assistance they have provided to the Russian invasion by being a base for military operations”.
Speaking to media about the broader trade sanctions, O’Connor said they would serve as an effective ban on imports from Russia.
“This is one more step in our clear statement that we want to stop the Russian war machine, and we'll do everything we can to stop the conflict.”
The Ukraine conflict would have some significant impacts on the world’s food supply, with both Russia and Ukraine large producers of grain, he said.
National Party foreign affairs spokesman Gerry Brownlee told Newsroom the decision to exclude Belarus from the trade sanctions was "inexplicable", given the role Belarus had played in the war and reports of air strikes being carried out from its territory.
"It's a very comprehensive splitting of hairs to try and get some kind of excuse for not including Belarus – they are without a doubt the strongest enabler of aggression into Ukraine."
Brownlee said he had broader concerns about why it was taking the Government so long to move against Russia and its enablers.
