European Parliament postpones approval of duty-free trade deal with Ukraine
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The scheduled March 25 vote by EU ambassadors on the regulations governing the import of Ukrainian agricultural products has been delayed until March 27, the Polish news outlet RMF24 reported on March 25.
France and Poland, along with few other neighbouring countries of Ukraine, are pushing for changes to further tighten restrictions on the import of agricultural products.
«Belgians claim that the postponement of the agreement approval is due to many countries still undecided on their votes," the RMF24 said.
"The Belgium presidency [of the Council of the European Union] has decided to leave a little more time to make the final decision."
Poland and France are dissatisfied with the compromise reached earlier by negotiators from the European Parliament and the EU Council, arguing that the restrictions on Ukrainian food imports are insufficient. French diplomats have stated that "the text of the agreement was not ready for acceptance." France and Poland are advocating for an extension of the reference period.
"Apart from the countries neighboring Ukraine, Italy, Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia also express their readiness to join the French-Polish initiative," the article said.
"However, Germany and the Netherlands do not want changes to the agreement, claiming that on the one hand, they cannot allocate billions of euros to support Ukraine and, on the other hand, deprive it of the opportunity to earn money."
The European Parliament and the EU Council reportedly reached a preliminary agreement to extend trade liberalization measures for Ukraine amid the Russian war. The agreement proposes extending the temporary suspension of import duties and quotas on Ukrainian agricultural exports to the EU until June 5, 2025.
Under the current regulations, "emergency brakes" may be applied for particularly "sensitive agricultural products," namely poultry, eggs, and sugar.
The European Parliament members have pushed for expanding this list to include oats, corn, cereals, and honey. They have secured firm commitments from the European Commission regarding measures in case of a sudden surge in wheat imports from Ukraine. Tariffs will be reintroduced if the import of these products exceeds average levels for the previous two years.
Polish protesters began restricting traffic on the Ukrainian border on Feb. 20, blocking trucks at various checkpoints.
They have outlined several demands, including the abolition of duty-free trade with Ukraine and the complete closure of the Ukrainian-Polish border for trucks.
The European Parliament Committee supported extending duty-free trade for Ukraine on March 7, 2024.
Ukraine responded by expressing readiness to restrict trade with the EU on its terms.
Polish farmers intensified their strike on March 20, completely halting truck traffic at Yahodyn and Rava-Ruska border crossings.
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