Six European agricultural organisations have issued a joint declaration calling on Brussels to limit imports of products from Ukraine to the EU in order not to “endanger the survival” of European producers. This was reported by the French newspaper Le Figaro.
Le Figaro recalls that in May 2022, the EU decided to temporarily suspend customs duties on Ukrainian imports. This measure will expire in June 2024, but Brussels will consider extending it in the coming months.
In this regard, organisations representing European farmers are alarmed by the consequences of these measures for Europe. In their view, the European agricultural sector is already “bearing a disproportionate and unbearable burden”.
“We fear that if this mechanism continues in its current form, without adaptation, the survival of European producers as a whole will be jeopardised,” said the signatories of the declaration.
European agricultural organisations propose to introduce mechanisms that would help to determine the destination of Ukrainian products and ensure that they get exactly where they were sent. They also advocated the introduction of import thresholds for products from Ukraine, based on the average values of 2021-2022, so that anything above that could only pass through the EU before being exported to third countries.
“Before extending the trade liberalisation agreement with Ukraine, “we need to make sure that we have all the necessary safeguards in place to respond if imports become too high or cause too much impact on our markets”, European Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski said.
The newspaper notes that imports of Ukrainian agri-food products to the EU for the period from January to September 2023 increased by 11% compared to 2022.
Earlier, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that Warsaw would demand that the European Union return the need for Ukrainian hauliers to obtain a permit to enter Europe.