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non-USA, by Country
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· Czech Repulic
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Říman calls on EU to resolve Czech-Austrian squabble
Jump to full article: Prague Post (cz), 2008-05-01
Author: Michael Heitmann Staff Writer, The Prague Post
Intro: Industry and Trade Minister Martin Říman is now calling on groups afflicted by Austria’s limit on Czech cigarette imports, like the “trafika” newsstands dotting the border, to sue the country through the European Union legal system.
Austrians are allowed to bring only 200 cigarettes, 100 cigarillos, 50 cigars or 250 grams of loose tobacco home from their visits to the Czech Republic — limits that technically should apply only to non-EU states. For member states, the EU sets guideline levels four times higher.
“This is not about getting more money to flow into the state treasury. It’s a matter of principle,” said Tomáš Bartovský, spokesman for the Industry and Trade Ministry. “[In this case] one EU member state is restricting the free trade of goods from another member state.”
It’s atypical for member states to file complaints against each other, hence Říman’s plea to tobacconists, Bartovský added.
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