Ukraine–Poland Tensions Grow Over Unfair Competition on EU’s Agri-Food Market

Farmer protests are a source of tensions between Ukraine and its neighbors on the West who support its fight of Russian invasion but face pressure from farmers.

Polish farmers protest over price pressures, taxes and green regulation, grievances shared by farmers across Europe and against the import of agricultural produce and food products from Ukraine, as they gather with tractors near Sulechow, Poland, on Feb. 20, 2024. Wladyslaw Czulak/Agencja Wyborcza.pl via Reuters

Polish farmers are blocking almost all border traffic with Ukraine to protest unfair European Union competition and the bloc’s climate change measures, both of which endanger their livelihood.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told reporters on Feb. 23 that Ukrainian grain, which is currently being blocked at the border by Polish farmers protesting EU’s policies, is not “intended for the Polish market.”

Mr. Zelenskyy said at a press conference in Lviv, Ukraine, “that Ukrainian grain does not go to the Polish market. ... We are willing and will do everything to resolve this issue,” according to a statement.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Feb. 22 that the Polish and Ukrainian governments would meet in Warsaw, Poland, on March 28, expressing his hope that by then, the ongoing technical talks at the ministerial level would lead to a fruitful meeting, but he didn’t accept Mr. Zelenskyy’s request for urgent talks this week.

Farmers across Europe have been demonstrating against constraints placed on them by European Union measures to tackle climate change, as well as unfair competition, particularly from Ukraine after the EU waived duties on Ukrainian food imports to help Ukraine after Russia invaded it.

Polish Farmers’ Protests

Protests by Polish farmers sparked anger in neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 20, as Kyiv called on the European Commission to take robust action after demonstrators blockaded the border and opened railway cars to let grain spill out.

Reuters reported that television footage showed protesters opening railway carriages to allow grain to pour onto the tracks at the Medyka border crossing in Poland.

Ukrainian Agriculture Minister Mykola Solskyi said the grain was headed to Germany and wouldn’t have entered the Polish market.

Adrian Wawrzyniak, a spokesman for the Solidarity farmers’ trade union, said in an interview with the Polish radio station Wnet.fm that farmers who were pouring out the grain transported by railway through the border showed that it was not really in transit to other countries as it was reloaded and sent to domestic consignees.

Warsaw has been a staunch supporter of Kyiv in its fight to repel a full-scale Russian invasion that began in 2022, although protests from farmers complaining of unfair competition have strained ties that were already on edge after truckers blocked border crossings around the turn of the year.

Last week’s protests from farmers marked an escalation from previous demonstrations, with a near-total blockade of all Ukrainian border crossings and disruption at ports and on roads nationwide.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint press conference with the European Commission president following their talks in Kyiv on Nov. 4, 2023. Anatoli Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images

Mr. Zelenskyy decried the protesting Polish farmers in his Feb. 19 speech.

“Near Kupiansk, close to the Russian border, where enemy artillery does not cease, news from the border with Poland seems outright mocking,” he said.

According to Mr. Zelenskyy, Ukraine exports only 5 percent of its grains through the Polish border.

“So in reality, the situation is not about grain, but rather about politics,” he said.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk attends a joint statement to the media with French President Emmanuel Macron (not pictured) as part of their meeting at Elysee Palace, Paris, France, Feb. 12, 2024. Christophe Petit Tesson/Pool via Reuters

Polish Government Stance

Mr. Tusk pointed out at his press conference that military, humanitarian, and medical aid to assist Ukraine in countering Russian attack is unquestionable and “kind of non-negotiable.”

To fully guarantee that this aid will travel to Ukraine without delay, Poland will include border crossings with Ukraine and certain sections of roads and railways on the list of critical infrastructure, he said.

The Solidarity farmers’ trade union that organized and coordinated farmers’ protests denied that protesters were obstructing military and humanitarian transports through the Polish–Ukrainian border, according to a statement.

“We firmly declare that humanitarian aid, military aid, and ARD vehicles [vehicles carrying dangerous goods] are allowed through all blockades on an ongoing basis, without waiting in line, and we are not aware of any cases of such transports being blocked,” Tomasz Obszański, president of the trade union, said in the statement.

Mr. Wawrzyniak told radio Wnet.fm that this government’s move could lead to stopping farmers’ protests at the border. He also said the union plans to move the protests to Warsaw, hoping that they will be more effective there.

“The second issue is how to protect Polish farmers and the Polish market against the negative effects of trade liberalization, i.e., opening the border to duty-free trade in agricultural products,” Mr. Tusk pointed out.

He said the Polish government will look for protective solutions for Polish farmers, using both national means and continued negotiations with Ukraine and European institutions to offset the negative consequences of trade liberalization with Ukraine as much as possible.

How EU Reacts to Farmers’ Protests

Norbert Lins, a member of the European Parliament (MEP) and chairman of the parliamentarian committee on agriculture, proposed immediate actions that the European Commission, the EU’s executive, must take to tackle the difficulties that European farmers have been facing, according to a statement.

Mr. Lins sent a letter to EU Agricultural Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski on Feb. 20 proposing “concrete actions” such as procedural and regulatory changes, as well as some changes to EU trading practices to improve their fairness, the statement said.

He also requested in the letter to assess the European Green Deal legislation related to agriculture to determine the need for any exceptions, transition periods, or alternative proposals, including maintenance of the status quo.

The European Green Deal is the EU’s initiative to fight climate change, which the EU considers “an existential threat to Europe and the world,” according to an EU policy statement.

Mr. Wojciechowski said in his letter sent in response to Mr. Lins that the union’s “trade and climate policies” are the main causes of farmers’ discontent, according to Euractiv.

He wrote in his letter: “Stop imports, Green Deal out!” and these words sparked attention and comment in some media, Mr. Wojciechowski said in a statement issued on Feb. 23 to clarify his remark.

“‘Stop imports, Green Deal out’ is a summary of the demands that I have heard from farmers over the course of several meetings and interactions in recent weeks. It is not a statement of my position,” Mr. Wojciechowski explained in the statement, noting that he regrets using the phrase.

The commissioner said that “farmers must be protected against the significant impacts of trade liberalization with Ukraine and any unfair competition in our trade agreements.”

He conceded that some Green Deal measures may make many farmers feel threatened, but in his view, the European Commission responds to farmers’ demands. For example, commission President Ursula von der Leyen withdrew a few weeks ago the proposal to reduce the use of pesticides, Mr. Wojciechowski said in the statement.

Polish border guard gives instructions as drivers wait to cross the border from Poland into Ukraine in Medyka, Poland, on Feb. 19, 2022. Czarek Sokolowski, File /AP Photo

Unfair Competition

Before the Russian invasion, Ukraine exported most of its agricultural goods through Black Sea ports to destinations in Asia and Africa, according to the Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW), a Poland-based think tank.

After the war broke out, Russia blocked Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea, which forced Ukraine to develop alternate overland routes through EU countries, according to the OSW report.

To support the embattled country, the EU temporarily suspended customs duties on Ukrainian exports, including agricultural products, and that significantly increased its exports of those goods to the EU.

Agricultural exports from Ukraine primarily flow by land to its neighboring EU countries because of relatively low transportation costs that can yield more profit, while exports to more distant destinations increase transportation costs, thus reducing profits, the OSW report notes.

EU farmers are obligated to comply with the strict union’s phytosanitary and animal welfare standards, which increases their production costs and makes their agricultural goods less competitive.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.