This Saturday, the European Commission promised to monitor the consequences for agricultural business of the entry of Ukrainian grains into the European Union (EU) after opposition from Hungary and Poland to the lifting of restrictions announced by the institution.
“The European Commission will continue to monitor the situation and is prepared to introduce restrictions if the market situation warrants it, so it will continue to maintain contacts with member states,” said the European Commission’s executive vice-president in charge of trade. .
Speaking upon arrival at the meeting of EU finance ministers, which will take place this Saturday in Santiago de Compostela as part of the Spanish Presidency of the Union, Valdis Dombrovskis noted that “what is important now is that everyone is working constructively”, without commenting on the Hungarian situation. and Polish contestation.
On Friday, the community leader announced the lifting of a ban imposed by five EU member states on Ukrainian grains to protect their farmers, with Kyiv vowing to control flows to neighboring countries.
However, a few minutes later, Hungary and Poland announced that they had decided to unilaterally extend the ban on the import of Ukrainian cereals, ignoring the European Commission.
“It is worth noting that the measures that were taken to prohibit certain imports of certain agricultural products were taken on the basis of exceptional guarantees,” but at present “we are verifying that there are no disruptions or distortions in the market of these five member states.” – emphasized Valdis Dombrovsky.
The community representative also stressed that “it is important that Ukraine agrees to create a system to avoid export peaks with five member states through export licenses or similar systems or elements that reassure member states.”
In May 2022, the EU suspended customs duties on all products imported from Ukraine for one year and was working to allow the export of its grain stocks after the closure of Black Sea routes following Russia’s invasion of the country in February 2022.
The influx of corn, wheat and sunflowers from Ukraine into neighboring EU countries has increased significantly, which has led to a glut of storage facilities and a drop in local prices.
So Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria banned imports of grains and other agricultural products from Ukraine in mid-April, saying they wanted to protect their farmers by starting a confrontation with the European Commission, which is responsible for EU trade policy.
At that time, the Community Executive concluded an agreement in principle with these four countries, which would eventually include Romania.
This Saturday, EU finance ministers will discuss reform of the Community fiscal rules that limit national deficits and debt, and will also informally discuss the leadership of the European Investment Bank (EIB), for which five candidates are running, including European Commission Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager and Vice President and Minister of Economy Nadia Calviño.
As Lusa advances, Portugal is backing Nadia Calviño’s candidacy and EU finance ministers must now reach consensus on the name without expecting it to happen this weekend.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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