EC invites ministers for talks on Ukrainian grain

Valdis Dombrovskis, a deputy head of the EC, has invited the trade ministers from five countries, including Poland, whose leaders wrote to the Commission about Ukrainian grain, for talks on the matter, a high-ranked EU source told PAP on Tuesday.

The video talks with the ministers of Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Slovakia are to take place on Wednesday afternoon, the source said.

In late March the five countries' prime ministers wrote to EC head Ursula von der Leyen demanding steps in face of the mounting inflow of Ukrainian grain to the EU. In the letter, initiated by Poland, the prime ministers warned that imports of considerably cheaper Ukrainian grain threatened domestic growers.

In Poland, farmers are staging countrywide protests after large quantities of Ukrainian grain destined for Asia and Africa found their way onto the domestic market, making prices plummet and keeping Polish farmers from selling their grain.

The grain was to transit through Poland in a gesture of aid to Ukraine, a major world grain producer, whose export possibilities have been limited due to its ongoing conflict with Russia.

"Support for Ukraine is a priority, but we will not be able to help Ukraine effectively if we allow millions of European private farmers to go bankrupt," the letter to von der Leyen read.

On Saturday, the Polish government responded to the situation by passing an import ban on Ukrainian grain and some other agricultural products until June 30. Poland was followed by Hungary and Slovakia, who also banned Ukrainian grain.

On Tuesday, similar plans were announced by Romania, which said it would continue to allow Ukrainian grain only to transit through the country.