The European Commission (EC) has described Poland and Hungary’s ban on imports of agricultural products from Ukraine as “unacceptable”. On this subject informed Reuters, citing an EC statement.
“Trade policy is the exclusive competence of the EU (European Union), and therefore unilateral actions (to block imports) are unacceptable. In these difficult times, it is extremely important to coordinate and harmonize all decisions within the EU,” the European Commission said.
April 15 Poland and Hungary announcement on the ban on importing Ukrainian agricultural products to protect their own farmers. These measures will be in force until June 30, 2023. In Poland, the ban, in particular, will affect cereals, meat, sugar, fruits, vegetables, milk and eggs, in Hungary – cereals and oilseeds.
In addition, as Polish Minister of Development and Technology Waldemar Buda said on Twitter, the ban on importing Ukrainian grain will also affect its transit through the country.
According to Reuters, such measures were taken due to the cheap Ukrainian grain market, which began to displace the products of Polish and Hungarian farmers. This, in particular, has angered people in rural areas of Poland and created a political problem for the ruling Law and Justice party, which villagers usually vote for.
In March, the Romanian Minister of Agriculture, Petre Deia, referring to the estimates of the European Commission declared that farmers in Poland, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria and Slovakia lost around 417 million euros due to the influx of cheap Ukrainian cereals on the markets of these countries. In April, the leaders of these countries urged The European Commission to buy their hoarded Ukrainian food, as the cost of their own produce is falling and the prices of fertilizers and energy are rising.
At the same time, the leader of Law and Justice, Yaroslav Kaczynski said that, despite the restrictive measures, the Polish authorities remain “unwavering friends and allies of Ukraine” and will continue to support Kiev.
“But the duty of any state, of any good government, in any case, is to protect the interests of its citizens,” he added.
The Hungarian government has also noted that it expects a revision of zero duties on imports of Ukrainian products.
The Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, in turn, said that the Kiev official regrets Warsaw’s decision to temporarily ban the import of grain and other Ukrainian food products. They also noted that Poland’s actions contradict the agreements between the two states, according to which Ukraine must supply wheat, corn, sunflower and rapeseed in transit through Polish territory until July 1.
“We understand that Polish farmers are now in a difficult situation, but we emphasize that Ukrainian farmers are in an even more difficult situation,” the ministry said.
Ukrainian Agriculture Minister Mykola Solsky also noted that 500-700 thousand tons of various agricultural products cross the Polish border every month.
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