EU bans the export of toilets to Russia – where one in five households have no indoor plumbing – in a bid to punish Putin for Ukraine invasion
- The European Union banned the exportation of lavatories to Russia last summer
- Russian citizens could be impacted as only one in five have indoor plumbing
- Russian soldiers are looting toilets in Ukraine to send back to families in Russia
The European Union has banned the export of lavatories to Russia in a bid to punish Vladmir Putin for his invasion into Ukraine.
The banned sale of lavatories was brought in in July 2022, but is only just being reported. It could have a considerable effect on Russian citizens given that one in five do not have indoor plumbing in their homes.
According to the Telegraph, the situation is so dire that toilets have been looted by soldiers fighting in Ukraine to be sent back to their loved ones in Russia – a pattern which has previously been brought to light by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Speaking last April, he said: ‘[Russians] used to talk about their biggest dream, to see Paris and die… their dream now is to steal a toilet and die.’
And just last month he highlighted the issue again, saying: ‘Let them take the toilet bowls – they’ll need them on the road – and go back home.’
The ban on the export of EU toilets has been pushed through in a bid to punish Vladmir Putin (pictured) for his invasion into Ukraine
The pattern of Russian soldiers looting toilets in Ukraine has previously been brought to light by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (pictured)
The ban is just one of a list of goods that Russia are barred from buying from European countries. It covers all European bidets, toilet pans, flushing cisterns and sanitaryware.
Despite being out of the EU, Britain has backed the ban, and sanctioned the exports of ‘lavatory pans’ and ‘toilet articles of porcelain or china’.
These measures could be made stricter in the coming weeks as we approach the one year anniversary of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
One European diplomat told the Telegraph: ‘The flushing toilet has done more for civilisation than any other single invention.
‘So by restricting exports we are merely bringing Russia’s technological advancement in line with the state of its civilisation.’
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