By KYIV. Nov 22 (Interfax-Ukraine) – A unilateral ban on the import of Ukrainian grain will remain in force until the European Commission offers a systemic solution to the problem of the dominance of Ukrainian agricultural products in Europe, Slovakian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Richard Takáč said at a bilateral meeting with Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski held during the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council AGRIFISH meeting in Brussels on Monday.
“Slovakia fully supports the transit of agricultural products from Ukraine to third countries through solidarity lanes. However, the reality is that a significant part of these goods remains on the EU common market and thus represents price competition for Slovak farmers exporting grain to the EU,” his words are quoted in a message on the website of the Ministry of Agriculture of Slovakia.
According to the Slovak Agrarian Minister, in Slovakia grain crops are grown on approximately 500,000 hectares of land – about a third of the entire cultivated territory of the Slovak Republic, so it is important for the country to maintain this level of production.
“The loss of these producers will lead to the collapse of the Slovak agricultural sector,” Takáč explained and added that Slovakia expects proposals from the European Commission for a systemic solution to the problem.
“Until such a solution is found at the EU level, the ban on the import of agricultural products from Ukraine to the Slovak market, adopted at the national level, will remain in force,” the minister said.
European Commissioner Wojciechowski, in turn, assured Takáč that the European Commission is attentive to the problems of the Slovak agricultural sector, but does not consider the unilateral measures that Slovakia plans to implement ideal. However, the European Commission is ready to look for a constructive pan-European solution to the issue of import of Ukrainian agricultural products.
Commenting on the recently published recommendation of the European Commission on the start of negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the EU, Takáč said that Slovakia perceives Ukraine’s future accession to the EU as a fact.
