The European Union (EU) plans to reduce imports of Ukrainian agricultural products, Christophe Hansen, EU agriculture commissioner, told AFP.
Hansen explained that the essential program that allows Kiev to sell agricultural products to the EU without any tariffs is expected to end in June, and that EU member states do not want to extend it any longer.
Brussels has suspended tariffs and quotas on Ukrainian agricultural products after Russia launched a military campaign against Kiev in February 2022.
The EU's goal is to allow grains and other agricultural products from Ukraine to be transported to global markets. However, these imported goods eventually swept through Eastern European countries, causing a wave of protests from farmers.
According to Hansen, the EU is now expected to review its emergency program. "The import quotas will no longer remain the same as in this temporary released period. So the reality is that there will be fewer imports, Hansen told AFP in an interview on March 28.
Hansen urged EU member states to find alternatives before the expiration date. "The discussions will have to take place quickly. The European Union is ready for negotiations and that will happen in the coming weeks," he said, without revealing whether Brussels has any specific plans on the issue.
Hansen admitted that it is clear that EU members do not want the free trade policy for Ukraine to be extended further. "We see that this has caused problems, especially in some member countries," he said.
Several Eastern European countries, including Poland and Bulgaria, which have faced the biggest protests from farmers, have repeatedly threatened to take unilateral measures against the import of Ukrainian agricultural products at the national level if their concerns are not resolved. Sofia called for a complete ban on Ukrainian eggs in September 2024.
Last week, Reuters reported that the EU plans to cut import routes from Ukraine sharply; saying that the next supply from Ukraine will be "far lower" than the current level. This information was cited in a meeting between member Hansen and leaders of the French farm trade union.
Ukraine warned that the end of its free trade policy would have serious consequences. The European Union is our main trading partner, and that is why it would really hurt us if we fell into the situation before the conflict, Ukrainian Finance Minister Sergey Marchenko told the Financial Times.
