Robert Telus made the statement in a television interview on Wednesday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
The Polish agriculture minister told state broadcaster TVP: “The talks about the import of agricultural products from Ukraine, held on Wednesday between the ministers from five EU countries, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria, and the bloc’s commissioners for agriculture and trade, will continue next week.”
EU calls for ‘common approach’ rather than ‘unilateral solutions’
Following Wednesday’s remote negotiations, the EU’s commissioner for trade and Vice President of the bloc’s executive Commission, Valdis Dombrovskis, and the EU’s commissioner for agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, stressed the need for “rapidly following a common EU approach, rather than unilateral solutions” to the issue of agricultural imports from Ukraine, according to an announcement.
Dombrovskis and Wojciechowski said in a statement: “Today, we met with representatives of the five Member States bordering Ukraine - Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Romania - as well as with Ukraine. We presented the EU's comprehensive proposals to address the concerns expressed by these five Member States regarding the deterioration in the situation of Union producers for specific products.”
The two commissioners added: “This proposed Commission package includes a second tranche of agricultural financial support to affected farmers, exceptional safeguard measures on key products and measures to facilitate the transit of Ukrainian grain exports via the [EU-Ukraine] Solidarity Lanes.”
The statement also said: “The Commission's proposed package is subject to Member States lifting their unilateral measures. We underlined the importance of rapidly following a common EU approach, rather than unilateral solutions to avoid multiple bans and solutions which put the internal market at risk.”
It added: “The Commission took note of the views presented by participants. We agreed to continue political consultations in the coming days in view of a swift solution.”
Poland, other countries call for restrictions on ‘wide range’ of agri-food products from Ukraine
Poland’s Telus told reporters that the five countries had agreed that the EU should put restrictions on a wider range of agricultural imports from Ukraine, not just wheat, corn, sunflower and rapeseed oil.
“We have struck a common stance,” he said. "We have agreed on which products are disturbing the market and in what way."
He also said that Poland’s move on Saturday to ban imports of certain agri-food products from Ukraine had been “a good decision” because it “made the EU recognise the problem and start to respond.”
EU executive pledges ‘preventive measures,’ financial support
Earlier on Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen issued a letter to the prime ministers of the five member countries, saying that Brussels would take “preventive measures” with regard to certain categories of grain, “in particular wheat, corn, sunflower, and rapeseed,” the PAP news agency reported.
Von der Leyen pledged that, "in addition to the already provided support package of EUR 56.3 million for the most affected farmers” in the five ‘frontline’ countries, the EU was preparing “a second financial support package of EUR 100 million,” as well as “launching an investigation into other sensitive products.”
Poland’s ambassador to the EU, Andrzej Sadoś, who attended Wednesday’s talks with the EU commissioners in person, said that Brussels’ proposals to address the influx of agricultural products from Ukraine represented “a step in the right direction,” but were “insufficient,” public broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.
Meanwhile, Wojciechowski, who is Polish, told Polish Radio he believed the EU and the five "frontline countries" were on track “to reach a compromise” on the issue, according to the IAR news agency.
Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria halt grain imports from Ukraine
Poland and Hungary announced bans on some imports from Ukraine on Saturday to protect their markets from an influx of supply, according to news reports.
Polish government spokesman Piotr Müller said on Sunday that "the decision to ban imports, including transit, of agri-food products from Ukraine has been taken due to the lack of other ways to ensure food security and stabilise the situation on the market."
The Polish ban is effective until June 30 and covers grain, sugar, fruit and vegetables, among other products, according to officials.
On Tuesday, Poland agreed to lift an embargo on the transit of Ukrainian grain and food products, on condition that shipments would be "sealed, escorted and monitored."
Meanwhile, Slovakia on Monday banned the import of grain and other farm products from Ukraine, following in the footsteps of Poland and Hungary, but will keep allowing transit to third countries, according to news outlets.
Bulgaria imposed its own ban on agricultural products from Ukraine on Wednesday, allowing only transit, according to The New Voice of Ukraine website.
Central Europe grapples with influx of cheaper grain from Ukraine
Some Black Sea ports were blocked after Vladimir Putin ordered Russian troops into Ukraine in February last year, and large quantities of Ukrainian grain—which is cheaper than that produced in the EU—ended up staying in Central European countries due to logistical bottlenecks, the Reuters news agency reported.
According to local farmers, this has lowered prices and reduced their sales.
At the end of last month, Poland and four other EU countries sent a joint letter to the European Commission, demanding restrictions on Ukrainian grain imports.
On Sunday, the bloc's executive said that unilateral action was unacceptable.
Thursday is day 421 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP, ec.europa.eu, The New Voice of Ukraine