Taxes on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products may have to be reintroduced if the drop in prices caused by the influx of products from Ukraine to the European Union markets cannot be stopped by other means, the prime ministers of five Eastern European countries, including Romania, said. Friday, Reuters reports.

In a letter to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, published on the Polish government’s website, the prime ministers of Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Slovakia reported the extent of the increase in products, including cereals, oilseeds, eggs, poultry . and sugar is “unprecedented”.

Ukraine, one of the world’s biggest grain exporters, blocked its Black Sea ports after Russia invaded in February 2022 and found alternative sea routes through European Union countries, Poland and Romania.

Logistical bottlenecks mean that large volumes of Ukrainian grain, which is cheaper than that produced in the EU, reaches Central European countries, hitting prices and sales for local farmers.

In the letter, the prime ministers called for measures to limit the market damage caused by Ukrainian imports, but said that if they failed, tariffs and tariff quotas would have to be reinstated.

We support Ukraine, but let’s put the country’s interests first

“Let’s support Ukraine, but do it wisely and, above all, put the interests of the country and Polish farmers first,” wrote Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on Twitter.

Among the measures proposed in the letter was a joint decision by the EU and the World Food Program to prevent Ukrainian grain from entering the EU markets.

They again called for more funds to be allocated to help farmers and faster development of transport infrastructure for transporting goods from Ukraine.

They also called for changes to the laws on the import of agricultural products, which will help regulate the volume and direction of the arrival of agricultural products.

Three months after the start of the war, the Council of the European Union adopted a resolution allowing temporary trade liberalization and other trade concessions for some Ukrainian goods.

On February 1, 2023, six Central European countries, including Romania, called on the European Union to take measures to ease problems caused by increased imports of Ukrainian grain into the region, complaining that the influx has depressed prices and affected local farmers, government officials said, quoted by Reuters .

Six countries have appealed to the European Commission, including compensation for farmers, in the context of a surplus of grain created by cheap imports from Ukraine, which has reduced demand for local products and sparked protests among farmers, Bloomberg also writes.

Farmers are protesting in Bulgaria

Protests by Bulgarian farmers against duty-free imports of Ukrainian grain continued on Friday for the third day in a row, blocking the border with Romania, local media reported, News.ro reports.

The bread growers say the protest must continue until it achieves its goal.

Protesters in Vidin, one of the centers of the organized protests, chant “Don’t kill the Bulgarian manufacturer,” Darik News reports.

More than 80 farmers protested here around 10:15 a.m. local time, blocking traffic on E-79 at the entrance to the city.

Farmers and agrarians of the region, who came out to express their dissatisfaction, brought heavy agricultural machinery with them to block the road.

Tractors have been standing on the side of the road leading to the bridge over the Danube for the third day, and long queues of cars and trucks have formed due to traffic jams on this section. Already ten minutes after the beginning of the blockade, long queues formed on both sides.

Leader Jeciko Andreinski says that working and not being able to sell what is produced leads to bankruptcy. “That’s why farmers are protesting not so much for money, but for the cancellation of the European regulation on the uncontrolled import of various grain and agricultural products from Ukraine, as a result of which our products remain unsold in warehouses,” Andreyinsky said. .