Russian Wine Blockade.  Add/Read Comments

When I say there is not much happening what I really mean is that there is a wine war in progress.... I have been following the story for a few days now; basically Russia has banned Moldovan and Georgian wine imports. Today they have expanded the ban to cover spirits and sparkling wines.

Russia's chief sanitation officer, Gennady Onishchenko, states that a large proportion of the alcohol imported from Georgia and Moldova does not meet Russia's sanitation standards, a claim both countries dispute. Is this due to health standards or down to the fact that Georgia and Moldova, which are both members of the World Trade Organization, are opposing Russian membership in the organization and/or are moving westwards in their allegiances?

International Herald Tribune
"The wine blockade, as it has instantly become known, has opened a new trade dispute between Russia and two former Soviet satellites, further souring relations between the Kremlin and the two young nations, whose governments have moved closer to the European Union and the United States. It has also raised fresh questions about the degree to which Russia is committed to free trade and willing to live within rules-based markets, rather than using the cross-border movement of goods and commodities as a lever to reward or punish its trading partners"