Moscow, Dec 5 (IANS): Russia's Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor) on Monday imposed import restrictions on fruits and vegetables from Moldova.

"Rosselkhoznadzor is forced to reinstate restrictions introduced in 2022 on the import of regulated products from the Republic of Moldova to Russia from December 4, 2023," the agricultural watchdog said in a statement on Thursday.

The statement said that the "ongoing systematic detection of elements subject to quarantine in vegetables and fruits" could inflict "multi-billion dollar damage" on agricultural production in Russia, and Moldova failed to take effective measures to prevent the supplies of these products, Xinhua news agency reported.

However, the Moldovan National Agency for Food Safety called the decision "groundless".

The Russian agency temporarily restricted the import of plant products from regions in Moldova to Russia on August 15, 2022, saying the decision was made due to the unfavourable phytosanitary situation in the country.

Russia gradually lifted the restrictions in December 2022.