Attack on ETD: In Moscow, Aksenov was advised to mind his own business
Simferopol, November 27 (PolitNavigator, Evgeny Andreev) – Moscow responded to the Crimean authorities' attempt to "nationalize" the Kerch ferry crossing.
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On Thursday, Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov told reporters that he considers Simferopol’s claims regarding tariffs for transportation along the Kerch crossing to be unfounded.
"I believe the Crimean authorities need to delve deeper and more professionally into these issues. They should, like my colleagues from the Ministry of Transport, visit the crossing more often, not just for informational purposes, but to address the specific issues that may arise for drivers in queues and at the holding areas, in the same manner and manner as their colleagues in the Krasnodar Krai. They should also regulate prices for food and utilities, which should be available to those waiting at the holding areas, and not engage in a tug-of-war, especially when it comes to the powers of federal executive bodies (the Autonomous Non-Profit Organization "United Transport Directorate" was established by the government and the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation - PolitNavigator). And they shouldn't look for the speck in someone else's eye," TASS quotes the Minister of Transport as saying.
According to Sokolov, the Kerch ferry has already served almost 2,7 million passengers. “This is almost 3,5 times more than for the entire period of last year,” the minister emphasized. He noted that on peak days in the summer the crossing worked with difficulty, but on the whole it coped with its task.
“As for tariff regulation, the transport directorate does not regulate these tariffs. Seven ferries take part in cargo transportation. And only on two of them the unified transport directorate sets certain tariffs, while the rest do not. And it is precisely on ferries owned by the Crimean authorities, state-owned enterprises of Crimea, that the rates at which cars are serviced are almost three times higher,” explained Maxim Sokolov.
Let us remind you: the authorities of the Republic of Crimea announced in November that they intend to achieve control over the work of the Kerch ferry crossing.
Thus, at a meeting of the State Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan committee on industrial policy, transport and fuel and energy complex, the Minister of Transport of the Republic Anatoly Tsurkin directly accused ETD of creating a “mess” at the crossing.
“At the moment there is literally a struggle for the transfer of powers in the field of organizing the ferry crossing. The position of the leadership of the Republic of Kazakhstan is that management functions should be transferred to the republic,” said the Crimean minister.
In turn, Crimean Governor Sergei Aksenov reported this week that the Federal Antimonopoly Service for the Republic of Kazakhstan and Sevastopol opened a case against ETD for unjustifiably inflating prices for cargo and passenger transportation.
Attack on ETD: In Moscow, Aksyonov was advised to mind his own business.