BSEC-URTA continues to be on-site; BSEC-URTA participated in the high-level meeting held at the Albita Border Crossing Point
Due to the significant traffic at the border crossing points between Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine, an extensive waiting time of 10 days has been observed in recent years.
As it will be recalled, the BSEC-URTA General Assembly, in its 43rd General Assembly meeting, discussed the main problems that caused the worst situations in these border crossing points for drivers and negatively affected the trade and logistic chains in the BSEC region and agreed to have meetings on the mentioned borders to overcome the problem.
In line with the decision of the General Assembly, thanks to the great efforts of specifically IRU President Radu Dinescu and the IRU team, Director of TIR, Tatiana Rey-Bellet, in cooperation with BSEC-URTA and BSEC PERMIS, undertook a working visit to the Albita Border Custom Office. Subsequently, a meeting was held to discuss and identify feasible and practical solutions to reduce long waiting times at the border.
The meeting was directed by Mr. Marcel Mutescu, the president of the Romanian Customs Authority and Romanian Customs Authority, Customs Service of Moldova, BSEC-URTA Members; AITA, ASMAP UA, and UNTRR participated in the meeting.
Deputy President Mrs. Olivera Miovska and Senior Advisor Mr. Adrian Albu represented BSEC-URTA.
BSEC-URTA emphasized in the meeting that border waiting times are a critical issue requiring immediate and coordinated action. The extended wait times inflict economic losses on each BSEC country and seriously threaten professional drivers. The BSEC region should consider implementing measures such as one-stop shops, joint controls, acceptance of certificates, and dedicated TIR lanes for AEO and TIR-EPD as positive examples to follow.
During the meeting, participants discussed and agreed on very positive ideas for the border crossings, such as prioritizing trucks based on security, implementing a pilot project to reduce border waiting times, and launching a new pilot project for placing TIR-EPD lanes in the border crossing points.
As the BSEC-URTA International Secretariat, we extend our sincere gratitude to the Romanian and Moldovan Customs Authorities, BSEC Secretary General H.E. Lazar Comenescu, IRU President Radu Dinescu, and Tatiana Rey-Bellet for making this meeting possible, as well as AITA for their exceptional hosting of the BSEC-URTA and its members.
