The EU makes further concessions to farmers. Negotiators from member states reached an agreement on Wednesday evening on tariffs on certain agricultural products from Ukraine.
In concrete terms, according to Parliament, this concerns eggs, poultry and sugar, but also maize, oats, groats and honey. In the future, there will be a certain quota for these goods that can be sold duty-free in the EU. When this amount is reached, rates are due again. Initially, no tariffs will apply to wheat imports, although measures can be taken under certain conditions. According to the provisional agreement, these rules should apply until June 2025.
In the course of the ongoing farmers’ protests in the EU, farmers from Poland in particular had called for changes in Ukrainian-European trade policy. There were repeated border blockades or attacks on grain transport. Polish farmers have been criticizing the import of cheaper agricultural products from Ukraine for months. For example, they want to prevent cheaper Ukrainian grain from reaching the domestic market.
Trade aid after the Russian invasion
After the Russian attack on Ukraine two years ago, Brussels suspended all import tariffs and quotas on agricultural products from Ukraine to help the country economically. There was already a trade agreement with Ukraine, but the additional relief went much further. According to EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis, the EU has never taken such trade facilitation measures.
Farmers from four other eastern EU countries faced disproportionate competition due to increased imports of goods from Ukraine. Recently, however, pressure from France has also increased. Grain producers have been weakened by price drops and skyrocketing costs and have been suffering for months from significant market disruptions caused by the flow of Ukrainian grain to the EU, French agricultural associations AGPB and AGPM said in mid-February.
Austrian warning letter to the Commission
As recently reported, farmers from Austria have sent a warning letter to the European Commission about grain imports. “Imports from Ukraine must return to pre-war levels. This requires quotas, customs duties and strict controls on quality standards,” called on MEPs Christian Sagartz from Burgenland and Alexander Bernhuber, whose political home is in Lower Austria (both ÖVP).
Source: Krone
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