The ministers of agriculture of the five EU member states affected by the crisis of cheap grain from Ukraine – Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia – in a new letter ask the European Commission to change and expand the rules that limit the import of Ukrainian agricultural products, Reuters writes from citing sources who wished to remain anonymous, the Polish news agency PAP.

In a letter sent to the European Commission, the agriculture ministers of the five countries say that the ban on imports, adopted on May 2, does not apply to goods imported under contracts completed before that date, which creates the risk that these contracts are the source, which is quoted by Reuters, will be allowed by the customs authorities.

According to them, there is a risk of abuse because the customs authorities do not have the necessary tools to check and investigate such documents.

The agriculture ministers of Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia are also demanding the extension of import restrictions until the end of the year.

The import of grain from Ukraine is limited until June 5 to Romania and 4 other EU countries – the decision of the European Commission

The European Commission has allowed Ukraine’s neighbors – Poland, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Bulgaria – to allow only transit of Ukrainian grain, not imports, for a limited period after they complained that Ukrainian grain had flooded their markets and was affecting on local producers.

Thus, on May 2, the European Commission decided to temporarily limit the import of wheat, corn, rapeseed and sunflower seeds from Ukraine to Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia based on the safeguard clause of the Regulation on autonomous trade measures.

During this period, wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower seeds originating in Ukraine may continue to circulate freely in all EU Member States, with the exception of the five “frontline” Member States, namely Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

The products concerned may continue to circulate within these five Member States or move under a common customs transit procedure, or they may continue to be sent to a country or territory outside the EU.