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WORLD NEWS Thursday 20 July 2023

Five European countries will extend ban on Ukraine’s

grain

By MONIKA SCISLOWSKA
Associated Press
WARSAW, Poland (AP) —
Five European Union coun-
tries will extend their ban on
Ukrainian grain imports to
protect their farmers’ inter-
ests, their agriculture minis-
ters said Wednesday, but
food can still move through
their land to parts of the
world in need after Russia
pulled out of a deal safe-
guarding Black Sea ship-
ments.
The ministers of Poland,
Slovakia, Hungary, Roma-
nia and Bulgaria signed a
joint declaration ahead of
EU discussions on the mat-
ter planned next week in
Brussels. The declaration
said they support continu-
ing to allow Ukraine’s grain
to move through their bor-
ders by road, rail and river
to destinations where it is An employee of the Romanian grain handling operator Comvex oversees the unloading of
needed but will keep the Ukrainian cereals from a barge in the Black Sea port of Constanta, Romania, on June 21, 2022.
import ban to their coun- Associated Press
tries through 2023.
“This coalition is not against tinations without hurting bought “unexpectedly the Black Sea Grain Initia-
anyone, not against the agricultural industry in good effects to us all,” say- tive,” stressing that the “risk
Ukraine or the EU, it is in the transit countries. ing figures show a doubling is that it brings food inse-
interest of our farmers,” Pol- “Today the EU should build of Ukrainian grain moving curity to so many vulner-
ish Agriculture Minister Rob- proper law and infrastruc- through Poland this year. able countries across the
ert Telus said after meet- ture tools to regulate trans- The Ukrainian Grain Asso- globe.”
ing with his counterparts in port of Ukraine grain in the ciation, meanwhile, has “The European Union will,
Warsaw, where they decid- long term,” Telus said. pushed to send more grain with all means, continue to
ed to push the ban beyond “We want to help Ukraine through the Danube River work to ensure that food
a Sept. 15 deadline. in the transit,” he said. to neighboring Romania’s security for vulnerable peo-
Except for Bulgaria, all the EU commissioner for agricul- Black Sea ports, saying it’s ple is given,” she said.
countries border Ukraine, ture, Janusz Wojciechows- possible to double monthly More than 45 million metric
which faced a major blow ki, a former Polish agricul- exports along that route to tons of grain, oilseeds and
Monday when Russia pulled ture minister, said on Twitter 4 million metric tons. other products have been
out of a breakthrough ac- in May that some 4.1 million But Cezar Gheorghe, exported through Europe,
cord brokered by the U.N. tons of Ukrainian corn, bar- founder of Romanian grain von der Leyen said.
and Turkey to allow Ukrai- ley and canola grain came analyst firm AGRIColumn, The Black Sea Grain Initia-
nian food to be shipped to Poland from April 2022 said that’s “not possible.” tive, which was brokered in
through the Black Sea to through March 2023, with Between March 2022 and a bid to end a global food
countries where millions are 3.4 million tons remaining June 2023, some 20 mil- crisis caused by Russia’s war
going hungry. Ukraine is a there and only about 700 lion tons of Ukrainian grain in Ukraine, has allowed an
major exporter of wheat, tons moving through. passed through the Roma- additional 32.9 million met-
barley, vegetable oil and Farmers launched protests nian ports of Constanta, ric tons to get to the world,
corn. and the countries passed Galati and Braila the maxi- according to the U.N.
The five agricultural minis- unilateral bans in April with- mum that could be han- Von der Leyen stressed that
ters and Polish Prime Min- out EU approval, threaten- dled, he said. it was “important that the
ister Mateusz Morawiecki, ing European unity in the “Ukraine will need to dis- blocking of the Black Sea
who met with them, said face of Russia’s invasion of burse also through Poland, is stopped” and that ex-
Ukrainian grain previously Ukraine. The EU later struck Hungary, Slovakia it is sim- ports can continue via that
got stuck in their countries, a deal allowing the coun- ple math,” Gheorghe said. route.
leading to a glut that drove tries to temporarily prohibit “We will stand alongside Ukrainian President Volody-
down prices for their farm- some agricultural products Ukraine, but through our myr Zelenskyy said Wednes-
ers, and they don’t want to from Ukraine and provide limitations.” day that his government
see that happen again. farmers more aid. The grain European Commission Pres- is working on solutions to
The ministers urged the EU is allowed to move through ident Ursula von der Leyen, keep exporting through
to work out mechanisms to other markets in sealed said Tuesday that she was the Black Sea despite Rus-
that will get Ukrainian grain and guarded transports. “deeply concerned about sia pulling its safety guaran-
and other food to their des- Telus said the EU ban has Russia’s move to terminate tees for ships.q