Poland pledges to keep border closed to Ukrainian grain

Warsaw will impose a unilateral ban if the EU allows the restrictions to expire in September, the agriculture minister has warned

Poland will unilaterally embargo Ukrainian grain if the temporary EU-backed restrictions on imports are lifted in September, the Polish agriculture minister has announced.

During a press briefing on Wednesday, Robert Telus said Poland will defend its own interests rather than those of Ukraine.

“I want to make it clear that after September 15 Ukrainian grain will still not be transported to Poland,” Telus stated, as quoted by the Polish agricultural news website farmer.pl.

The minister was referring to the EU prohibition on imports of Ukrainian wheat, corn, rapeseed, and sunflower oil to five member states, which is set to expire on September 15.

Brussels imposed the ‘temporary restrictions’ in May in order to protect farmers in Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria. The countries’ markets were flooded with cheap Ukrainian grain after the EU suspended customs duties in an effort to aid Kiev financially.

The ban does not prohibit the transit of Ukrainian crops to other states.

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The five nations called on the EU in July to extend the ban until at least the end of the year. There are concerns that Ukrainian produce could once again flow into those countries’ markets after the expiration of the Black Sea Initiative – a UN-brokered deal between Ukraine and Russia that allowed Ukrainian grain to be transported via the Black Sea.

Telus said he was confident that “some” of the other countries affected by the grain crisis would join Poland in imposing unilateral restrictions.

Last month, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki also pledged that Poland would maintain the ban, with or without the European Commission's consent.

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