Amid the limitation by Kyiv of the business with the separatist regimes in eastern Ukraine and the annexed Crimea, the Ukrainian companies continue to make money from exporting to “Transnistria” – a separatist region in eastern Moldova, says a journalistic investigation entitled “Business partners of the Republic Sheriff”, published by RISE Moldova, which is quoted by IPN.
As the authors of the article determined, among the largest suppliers of goods to the self-proclaimed “Moldovan Nistrean Republic” (MNR) are the representative offices in Ukraine of world brands and even the company “Roshen” owned by the Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, having the Transnistrian Ltd “Sheriff”, owned by local oligarch Victor Gusan, as the main business partner.
“The firm “Sheriff” Lrd is known as a pillar-company of Gusan’s business holding bearing the same name and can be considered one of the main beneficiaries of the existence of the self-proclaimed “MNR”, said the authors of the investigation, explaining the context.
Even if the statistical data of the Customs Service of the Republic of Moldova do not contain official information about the import of goods from Ukraine to the Transnistrian region, the journalists of RISE revealed half a million operations to export from Ukraine to the Transnistrian region, whose examination helped compile the rankings of the top-20 largest Ukrainian commercial partners of “Sheriff”.
The journalists calculated that since 2014, about 300 Ukrainian companies have traded with “Sheriff” Ltd alone (not with the holding with the same name), with the value of transactions totaling over US$ 100 million. It happened outside the customs control of Moldova, which legally embraces Transnistria too.
“Since 2014 until the first half of 2017, trade between “Roshen” and “Sheriff” came to about US$3 million. Moreover, the goods were supplied directly to Transnistria, which is by avoiding the control of Moldova,” said the authors.
“Since 2014 (when Crimea was annexed and the antiterrorist operation started) until the first half of 2017, trade between the Kyiv branch of “Nestle” and “Sheriff” totaled about US$4 million, while the invoiced value of trade with “Coca-Cola Ukraine” amounted to about US$ 1 million.
The authors explain that Moldova during about 25 years has been unable to take control of the flow of goods over its eastern border with Ukraine (along Odessa region), invoking different reasons, including unwillingness to escalate the conflict with Tiraspol.
According to Iulia Marushevski, ex-head of the Odessa customs post, who is cited in the investigation, the lack of joint checkpoints on the Transnistrian segment is a geopolitical problem that suits Transnistria and Russia.
“Advantages from this problem are obtained including by smugglers and, respectively, by average-rank functionaries from Chisinau and Kyiv,” said Marushevski.
