Latvia Plans 300% Tariff on Russian Grain

The Latvian government plans to impose a 300% tariff on grain arriving from Russia and Belarus, Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs announced on Monday.

Officials in Latvia and neighboring Lithuania said last week that they were considering ending shipments of Russian grain through their ports after Moscow increased transit volumes in response to Ukrainian attacks on its Baltic export facilities.

Russian exporters are moving grain via Latvia, an EU and NATO member, to other markets, analysts and traders have said.

A ban or high tariffs could cut off a key alternative at a time when Black Sea and Azov Sea routes have been paralyzed by Ukrainian drone strikes.

Russia exported 46.3 million metric tons of grain through ports on the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea during the last export season, from July 2025 to June 2026, accounting for 90% of the country's total seaborne grain exports.

(Reuters, max)