Until June 30: Poland imposed a ban on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products

Poland has imposed a temporary ban on the import of agricultural products from Ukraine. The corresponding order was published by the Ministry of Development and Technology of the Republic. Until June 30, 2023, 18 types of products were banned, including seeds, grains, fruits and vegetables, wines, poultry meat and bee products.

The formal reason for such a step in Warsaw was the need to protect the health of Polish citizens, since pesticides banned in the European Union were allegedly found in Ukrainian products.

Warsaw also noted that the ban on the import of Ukrainian products was introduced in full compliance with EU laws, which allow member states to set such restrictions if necessary.

In Kiev, the decision of the Polish authorities was criticized. As noted in the Ukrainian Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food, Warsaw thus allegedly violated existing agreements. According to the ministry, a week ago, the parties agreed that four crops (wheat, corn, sunflower seeds and rapeseed) will go through Poland only in transit until July 1, 2023.

Following Poland, Hungary also imposed a temporary ban on grain imports from Ukraine until June 30. As explained by the Minister of Agriculture of the Republic Istvan Nagy, this decision was made to protect Hungarian farmers from importing cheap Ukrainian products. He recalled that Ukraine uses methods and techniques prohibited in the EU in agricultural production, which allows Kiev to avoid unnecessary costs and supply large volumes of poultry meat, eggs and honey to the European market in addition to grains and oilseeds. In such a situation, farmers in Central Europe cannot sell their products, the minister said.

• István Nagy
• Legion-Media
• © Balint Szentgallay

He expressed hope that by June 30, the EU will be able to take measures for a long-term solution to the problem with Ukrainian grain.

Earlier, on April 13, Slovakia introduced similar measures. The Ministry of Agriculture and Regional Development of this republic has stopped the processing and sale of Ukrainian grain and flour in the country. The official reason is the presence of pesticides banned in the EU in products.

The European Commission, in turn, criticized such bans, pointing out that the EU's trade policy is the exclusive competence of the entire community, so any unilateral actions in this area are unacceptable.

Farmers' revolt

It is worth noting that the introduction of restrictive measures by Poland, Hungary and Slovakia was preceded by numerous protests by European farmers who oppose the growth in the supply of cheap Ukrainian agricultural products. In their opinion, Ukrainian imports reduce prices on the market and make the work of local producers unprofitable.

• Protest action of Romanian farmers
• AP
• © Andreea Alexandru

So, in February, Polish farmers blocked roads near crossings on the Polish-Ukrainian border in protest, blocking the entry of trucks with grain from Ukraine. Similar protests took place in Bulgaria and Romania.

Recall that in 2022, Brussels established a duty-free regime for the import of Ukrainian goods for a period of one year (until June 5, 2023). This measure was taken to support the Ukrainian economy and deepen the country's integration into the internal market of the European Union.

All this has led to a significant increase in the volume of imports of Ukrainian agricultural products to the EU. Thus, according to the European Commission, the import of wheat from Ukraine to the European Union in 2022 increased tenfold compared to 2021 - from 287 thousand to 2.85 million tons.

The issue of the influx of Ukrainian goods has been repeatedly raised by the EU countries at the official level. In particular, in January, Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Romania tried to draw the attention of Brussels to the problems faced by local farmers.

Delegations from these countries asked to pay compensation to farmers suffering losses and to make the agricultural policy of the European Union more flexible.

In February, Hungarian Agriculture Minister Istvan Nagy said that the EU had not responded to requests to restrict the import of Ukrainian grain. He lamented that Brussels does not stand up for Hungarian and Central European farmers and does not provide them with any assistance.

On February 23, the EU extended the duty-free import of Ukrainian grain until June 2024. At the same time, the EC noted that the updated agreement with Ukraine also contains tools to protect the European market.

Against this background, in March, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban promised that Central Europe would provide protection to farmers from dumping prices for Ukrainian grain.

"Under the pretext of violating sanitary standards"

According to analysts, Poland and a number of other EU countries have decided to impose a ban on Ukrainian imports due to pressure from local producers. Experts believe that the data on the alleged presence of pesticides in Ukrainian goods served only as a pretext.

• Warsaw
• Gettyimages.ru
• © Aleksander Glowacki / EyeEm

"They began to have very tough speeches by agricultural workers who were outraged that Ukrainian products are sold at dumping prices, which practically ruins local farmers. In Poland, for example, elections are approaching, so the current government considered that it was necessary to react to the situation, "said Vladimir Zharikhin, deputy director of the Institute of CIS countries, in a conversation with RT.

Poland is the most important supplier of agricultural products to European markets, said Sergey Margulis, senior lecturer at the Department of International Politics and Regional Studies at the Institute of Social Sciences of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.

"In this case, the purchase of Ukrainian goods at lower prices deals a serious blow to Polish farmers. Polish farmers have repeatedly taken to the streets with protests. And this is unprofitable for the current government. As a result, by banning imports, the Poles simply eliminated an economic competitor, "the specialist said in a conversation with RT.

He added that Kiev has practically no leverage to influence the decision of Poland and other European countries.

"Ukraine is not in a position to dictate anything to Western countries. The probability of bargaining is almost zero, "says Margulis.

At the same time, experts doubt that the ban will have a significant impact on the Ukrainian economy, which is already actually financed by the West.

"Of course, this is a blow to Kyiv. But it must be borne in mind that the Ukrainian economy at the moment is completely dependent on Western subsidies and loans. Therefore, it will not become a serious threat to them, "Margulis is sure.

According to analysts, the current decision of Poland, which positions itself as one of the key supporters of the current Kiev regime, should be an important lesson for Ukraine, since it suggests that in the same way, Warsaw may refuse other forms of support for Kiev in the future.

"Poland takes an example from its "big brother", as the Polish authorities, as you know, consider the United States. And Washington always acts in this vein - it violates previous agreements when it is beneficial to it, "Zharikhin concluded.