Farmer protests took place in Slovakia against the European Union’s agricultural policy and demanding faster payment of subsidies, TV channel TA-3 reported.
Protests occurred in several cities in Slovakia. The total number of participants is estimated at 300 people. During the protests, agricultural machinery blocked vehicle circulation for an hour at the Vyshne-Niemecke-Uzhgorod checkpoint, on the border with Ukraine.
Farmers demand immediate payment of subsidies, the delay of which is associated with bureaucracy both at the country level and at the EU level as a whole. According to the president of the Association of Landowners and Entrepreneurs in the Agricultural Sector, Jan Elen, the protests are aimed at drawing the attention of the authorities to the critical situation faced by farmers in Slovakia.
Elen explained that last year the purchase prices from wholesale buyers were low and, in addition, farmers did not receive the direct subsidies to which they were entitled. The industry, he said, needs access to loans on the most favorable terms. Elen also affirmed the need to introduce into the EU a ban on duty-free imports of agricultural products from countries that are not members of the community.
They are scheduled to be joined by colleagues from Slovakia on February 22, when farmers protests take place in other EU countries.
Source: Rossa Primavera
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