If the grain issue is not resolved, Poland may block Ukraine’s accession to the EU

If the issue of the ban on Ukrainian grain imports to Poland is not resolved, Warsaw may block Kyiv’s accession to the European Union. This was stated by Polish Agriculture Minister Robert Telus, according to the TVN24 website.

“If we do not create the tools today, Poland will definitely not agree to Ukraine’s accession to the European Union,” he said.

The minister added that when Poland joined the EU, it had to fulfill strict conditions. “We must also set conditions for Ukraine,” Telus emphasized.

“What we are doing now, our firm position, what we did on April 15 (banning grain imports from Ukraine – ed.), is building the possibility of Ukraine’s accession to the European Union,” the Polish official added.

As the Minister of Agriculture emphasized, according to the current situation, “Polish agriculture will never win over Ukrainian agriculture.” “There are several hundred thousand farms there. This is a completely different agriculture, which is why our position is so strong,” Telus said.

As reported by Taras Kachka, Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade Representative of Ukraine, Poland imposed additional bans on imports of Ukrainian flour and feed over the weekend. This will affect a significant portion of Ukrainian exports. If Warsaw does not lift these measures, Ukraine will ban imports of fruits and vegetables from Poland.

Kyiv will sue Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia for their refusal to lift the ban on imports of Ukrainian agricultural products. Ukraine will also appeal to the World Trade Organization arbitration. Kachka noted that such actions of the countries are legally incorrect and indicate a complete lack of trust in the European Commission.

Tags: EU, Poland, Ukraine, grain