We do not know what the conversation will be with the participation of the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Member States, the opinions of the states are divided – said on Wednesday the head of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Czesław Siekierski, referring to the agreements in the European Parliament on the restriction of imports of certain agricultural products from Ukraine from June.
EU countries and the European Parliament agreed on Wednesday to restrict imports of agricultural products from Ukraine that are exempt from customs duties – eggs, poultry, sugar, as well as oats, corn and honey – in response to agricultural protests in Europe. According to a press release from the European Parliament, the provisional agreement extends the customs duty exemption granted to Ukraine from 2022 for one year, but with “backstop mechanisms” targeting certain sensitive products.
READ ALSO: Farmers’ debate with Minister Siekierski without agreement. Instead of details, distorted translations: “Please don’t blame me”
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Czesław Siekierski said, referring to this information, that “this list of sensitive products was expanded during the parliamentary debate.”
But at the same time, we do not know how the conversation will proceed, what the course of the tripartite discussion will be, in which not only representatives of Parliament, but also of the European Commission and, above all, of the Member States will participate (…). There are divided opinions about the inclusion and expansion of this list
– informs the head of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Differences within the EU itself
As he noted, “the EU and the Member States have very different approaches and different expectations regarding the form of support or possibilities (…) when it comes to the European side, obtaining certain demands from Ukraine.”
The minister assessed that “Ukraine is meeting its expectations very smartly” and is trying to maintain the support the country receives in the form of duty-free access to the European market.
European farmers are protesting against the influx of Ukrainian products, which lowers local prices and introduces unfair competition.
It is worth asking: where is Donald Tusk’s much-vaunted ‘agency’ in the EU? The use of the words ‘we don’t know’ hardly indicates this.
gah/PAP
Source: wPolityce