The Polish government admitted this Friday that Warsaw and Kyiv are “far from reaching an agreement” on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products blocked at the common border due to protests by Polish farmers.
The current situation “does not allow us to say that there is a satisfactory solution for the Polish side or Polish farmers. We are far from this agreement,” Jan Grabec, chief of staff to the Polish Prime Minister following the Ukrainian Prime Minister, said in a statement to the AFP news agency Denis Chmygal went to the border post to meet with Polish officials.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sent Denis Chmyhal to neighboring Poland this Friday to try to find a solution to the current crisis between the two countries, but the meeting with Polish officials never took place.
“Unfortunately, there is no Ukrainian proposal yet that would allow us to hope for a way out of the impasse in trade relations,” Granets continued.
“At the moment, a meeting of this kind (…) has no meaning for us,” he added, answering a question about the absence of the Polish side at the failed meeting on the common border with the Ukrainian Prime Minister.
And he concluded: “There are no mutually acceptable solutions, and it is useless to organize a meeting to confirm the absence of compromise.”
On Thursday, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk recalled that a meeting of the governments of Poland and Ukraine is scheduled for March 28 in Warsaw, “as agreed.”
The head of the Polish government assured that he remains in “constant contact” with his Ukrainian counterpart.
Farmer protests have been ongoing in Poland for several weeks now, and roads and crossings on the border with Ukraine are being blocked.
According to Polish farmers, the influx of Ukrainian products allowed by Brussels has caused a drop in market prices, as well as non-compliance with European Union (EU) standards.
Poland has been among Ukraine’s most important backers since the start of the Russian offensive in February 2022, but their relations have deteriorated in recent months due to the ongoing dispute.