Norway is planning to make a decision to restrict the entry of private cars with Russian licence plates.

As NRK reports, referring to the statement of the State Secretary of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Eivind Vad Petersson, the official said that the Foreign Ministry is currently working on new rules to restrict the import of Russian cars into the country.

"Just like Finland, Norway will introduce restrictions on the entry and use of cars with Russian registration. We are currently studying how to do this and will come back with effective measures soon," he said.

Norway has so far banned imports but allowed the temporary use of cars with Russian licence plates.

Earlier, it was reported that the Norwegian government has not taken a final position on the updated sanctions recommendations of the European Commission, which include a ban on entry for private cars with Russian licence plates.

Norway is not a member of the European Union, but it adheres to most of the EU sanctions imposed in response to Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine.

According to the Norwegian Immigration Service, obtained by The Barents Observer, 6,300 people crossed the border with Russia in August, 23% more than in the same month in 2022. And in the northern Norwegian district of Finnmark, 646 cars with Russian registration were counted in August.

After Finland bans entry of cars with Russian registration, and if Norway does not lift its ban, there could be problems on the six roads between the two countries in the north, as only random customs checks are carried out there.

In addition, The Barents Observer notes, many Russians now travel to Finland via Norway after Helsinki banned entry to Russian citizens arriving on tourist visas last September, but not to Norwegian citizens.

Following Finland's decision, the entire eastern border of the EU is closed to Russian cars – Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia made the same decision earlier this week.c