EU slaps harsh agro-tariffs on Russia and Belarus, but halts free trade with Ukraine too

European Union's top bodies agreed on Thursday to introduce new, steep tariffs on agro-produce and fertilizers from Russia and Belarus - aiming to effectively cut off the regimes of Putin and Lukashenko from the European agricultural markets. However, the EU also voted not to prolong the current free trade agreement with Ukraine, which was in place for the last three years but will expire in early June.

Polish farmers' protest in early 2025 (illustration image)

Shutterstock/Karol Serewis

Click on the player icon above for an audio report by Marcin Matuszewski.

EU countries greenlight return to pre-war tariffs on Ukranian agricultural imports: Natalukha said that while the Commission promised last year to replace the ATMs with a long-term framework, no such structure has materialised. https://t.co/lS2bBGFbPr pic.twitter.com/qBc4p8STzy

— Euractiv (@Euractiv) May 22, 2025

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Source: IAR, PAP, Euractiv.com