Spokesperson of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov today told reporters that the ban on imports of vegetables from Azerbaijan and Armenia is the prerogative of a relevant government agency, not an issue for the Kremlin to solve, RIA Novosti reported.

As reported earlier, starting from December 10, Rosselkhoznadzor (Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance) will ban the imports of tomatoes and apples from Azerbaijan due to the detection of pests, particularly the South American tomato moth and eastern moth in fruits and vegetables (tomatoes, apples). In addition, starting from December 14, Rosselkhoznadzor will ban the imports of tomatoes and peppers from Armenia’s Armavir Province due to the detection of the pepino mosaic virus.

According to Peskov, the relevant government agency shouldn’t agree on its actions with the Kremlin. Peskov added that the decisions are related to viruses and are in special focus due to the pandemic.