Ukraine agreed to restrictions on agricultural exports to lift blockade of border with Poland - Ukrainian PM
MOSCOW. March 29 (Interfax) - Ukraine offered Poland a plan consisting of five steps, with progress seen in some of them, during the discussion about unblocking the Ukrainian-Polish border for agricultural products, Ukrainian media quoted Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmygal as saying on Telegram following his meeting with Polish counterpart Donald Tusk on Thursday.
Shmygal said the first step was Ukraine's consent to restrictions, including safety restrictions, proposed by the European Commission on Ukrainian agricultural exports.
"This is a compromise that is necessary for our countries so that agricultural exports from Ukraine do not pose even a theoretical threat to Polish agricultural producers," he said.
The second step was Ukraine's proposal to the European Commission to conduct an urgent screening, that is, analysis of Ukrainian legislation in agricultural policy and transport for compliance with European rules. The European Commission recognized screening of Ukrainian agricultural policy as a priority. Ukraine expects it to begin at the end of April.
Thirdly, Ukraine proposed the European Union to stop Russian and Belarusian agricultural exports. "We are grateful to the Polish government and the Sejm, which made the corresponding request to the European Commission. Our voice was heard in Brussels. The European Commission proposed introducing a 50% increase in duties on agricultural products from Russia and Belarus, including grain imports. The new rates should actually stop trade," Shmygal said.
Ukraine's fourth proposal was the creation of an anti-crisis headquarters. Within its framework, interaction has already been established between the ministers of agriculture and economy of Ukraine and Poland. The specialized associations of the two countries agreed on similar cooperation on Wednesday. Shmygal said that the latest meeting of the joint coordination platform for the export and transit of Ukrainian agricultural products demonstrated the readiness of the parties to develop joint decisions.
The fifth step was Ukraine's request to Poland that free passage across the border would apply not only to ammunition and humanitarian aid, but also to fuel "This is important because it directly concerns issues of national security. Poland has added border checkpoints and nearby routes to the list of critical infrastructure facilities. We did the same," Shmygal said, adding that it is important to maintain the positive trends and dynamics for unblocking the Ukrainian-Polish border.
Many EU countries have seen widespread protests by agricultural producers this year expressing dissatisfaction with the European Commission's green policy and price rises for inputs against a backdrop of duty-free agricultural products coming from Ukraine. In particular, Polish farmers are also expressing discontent because in the current conditions it is difficult for them to compete with cheaper Ukrainian products, Western media report.
The EU's decision to allow duty-free imports from Ukraine in 2022 has prompted a substantial share of cheap Ukrainian farm produce to go to countries neighboring Ukraine. The situation caused especially heavy damage to the agribusiness sectors of Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria.