Polish Agriculture Minister Robert Telus said on Tuesday that the support for the country's farmers was important and for that purpose Warsaw needed to distribute Ukrainian grain to other European countries as soon as possible
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th April, 2023) Polish Agriculture Minister Robert Telus said on Tuesday that the support for the country's farmers was important and for that purpose Warsaw needed to distribute Ukrainian grain to other European countries as soon as possible.
"We must halt the influx of grain from Ukraine and get as much grain as possible out of Poland," Telus told Polish broadcaster Polskie Radio.
Telus also said that he intended to "offer a certain plan" to his counterparts from Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and the Czech Republic to ensure that Ukrainian grain is distributed throughout Europe, and does not settle in the respective countries.
The minister added that the issue with Ukrainian grain will be discussed at an emergency government meeting later in the day, with the participation of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, Deputy Prime Minister and State Assets Minister Jacek Sasin, Infrastructure Minister Andrzej Adamczyk and Health Minister Adam Niedzielski.
Last week, the authorities announced that Poland would block imports of Ukrainian corn, wheat, sunflower and rapeseed.
Since early February, several Polish farmer organizations, including conservative political AGROunia movement, protested against the increased imports of Ukrainian grain flooding the Polish market at lower prices and damaging local production, despite the government's previous assurances that the grain would be re-exported elsewhere. According to the official Polish data, around 2 million tonnes of grain have been imported there from Ukraine over the past year.
In late March, the prime ministers of several European countries appealed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to resolve the crisis caused by the influx of Ukrainian grain. The letter, signed by the prime ministers of Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Slovakia said that a significant increase in supplies from Ukraine has caused an unprecedented growth in imports of grain, oil crops, eggs, poultry, sugar, Apple juice, berries, apples, flour, honey and pasta products.
