By KYIV. Sept 4 (Interfax-Ukraine) – After September 15, Poland will not allow the import of grain from Ukraine, since the interest of Polish farmers is more important for the country’s government than any EU regulations regarding this, Polish Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Robert Telus has said.
“We know what could happen if grain (from Ukraine) entered Poland after September 15. The more so that at the moment the price of grain is low and grain warehouses are already full. Therefore, we know that it is in our interest and we will defend it. That’s why I’m going with this message to Spain for the summit of agriculture ministers,” Polish newspaper farmer.pl quoted him as saying during the National Agricultural Exhibition in Częstochowa last Sunday.
Telus informed the public that on Monday he would visit Spain, where, together with representatives of Ukraine neighboring countries – Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Romania – he would convince the countries of the European Union to extend the ban on grain imports from Ukraine to the EU until the end of 2023 after September 15.
“When the war in Ukraine broke out, Polish society, including farmers, became rescuers of the Ukrainian cause… Polish society has become a lifesaver. We are saying loudly in Brussels today: a dead rescuer is a bad rescuer. We will not allow a Polish farmer to lose out on arbitrary decisions of officials from Brussels,” Deputy Minister of Agriculture Krzysztof Ciecióra said.
According to Janusz Kowalski, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Polish government has supported Polish farmers with EUR 3.181 billion, while the financial support from the European Commission is only EUR 63.614 million.
