Poland figures out what to do with Ukrainian grain
Poland should maintain blockade of Ukrainian grain, but with transit allowed when Polish ports have free transshipment capacity, said Monika Piątkowska, President of Grain and Feed Chamber of Poland, in an interview with farmer.pl on April 16.
Read also: Polish protesters to temporarily unblock Zosin-Ustyluh border checkpoint on March 21
“Today, it would be better if blockade of grain imports remained in place, and when it comes to transit, we could implement it to some extent and thus help Ukraine when we have free processing capacity in Polish ports,” she said.
Piątkowska noted that in first quarter of 2024, Polish ports were not 100% utilized.
“We must conclude that our port infrastructure and railroad infrastructure are inefficient,” she added.
Read also: Ukrainian National Bank estimates losses from Polish border blockade
“Now is the time to expand it. I believe that we have overslept last two years in this context. Romania received funds from European Union and is expanding its infrastructure, while Poland has not yet done so.”
She is convinced that Poland must show both Ukraine and international community that it wants to help effectively, but, on the other hand, firmly defends interests of Polish farmers. These two goals, in her opinion, need to be combined.
“Sooner we come to an understanding, sooner we develop mechanisms, less complicated will be atmosphere that can hinder our broader cooperation not only with Ukraine, but also in European arena,” summarized Piątkowska.
Earlier it was reported that on Feb. 20, Polish protesters started to restrict traffic on border with Ukraine. Trucks were blocked at Medyka - Shehyni, Dolhobychuv - Uhryniv, Zosin - Ustyluh, Korczowa - Krakowiec, Hrebenne - Rava-Ruska and Dorohusk - Yagodyn checkpoints.
Read also: Total Ukraine-Poland border closure would be disastrous, freight forwarder warns
Farmers put forward many demands, including two main ones: abolition of duty-free trade with Ukraine and complete closure of Ukrainian-Polish border to trucks.
On the same day, March 7, Ukraine announced that it was ready to restrict trade with EU, but on its own terms.
Poles changed their decision on agrarian blockade of Ukraine on April 4.
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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
