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than it used to be because customs inspections of road and rail transport is very time consuming. According to Solomchuk, Ukraine still has not resumed the export of wheat, corn, sunflower, and rapeseed to five EU member countries’ markets, which the European Commission banned until September 15, 2023. Although the European Commission announced on September 15 that the EU will not extend the temporary restrictions, Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia decided to unilaterally continue to block the import of Ukrainian agricultural products past the EC’s deadline.
Ukraine has put forward proposals for the launch of a sea corridor to export grain at full capacity. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, believes that the operation of a maritime corridor to export Ukrainian grain without the participation of the Russian Federation is quite real. To accomplish this, the EU needs to work on strengthening the guarantee of safety on this route. "If the EU and Ukraine additionally join forces to guarantee the security of this corridor, then the corridor can work at full capacity," Kuleba said at a joint press conference with EU High Representative Josep Borrell in Kyiv. The minister emphasized that Ukraine should seek solutions with the EU that would deprive the Russian Federation of the opportunity to blackmail the world with famine or high grain prices. It is worth noting that, according to Deputy Minister of Agricultural Policy Taras Vysotskyi, in September Ukraine exported approximately 50,000 tons of grain and other goods by sea.
Ukraine will be able to speed up the transit of grain through Poland to the largest port on the Baltic Sea. Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania agreed on a "green corridor" to transit Ukrainian grain through Poland to the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda, one of the largest on the Baltic Sea. The parties finally agreed following lengthy negotiations between Ukrainian Minister Mykola Solskyi and his Polish and Lithuanian colleagues - Robert Telus and Kästutis Navickas. Ukraine proposed transferring veterinary, sanitary, and phytosanitary control of agricultural cargo from the Ukrainian-Polish border to the Lithuanian port. Telus and Naviskas confirmed that their governments both support this control mechanism and consider it a constructive step. Inspections of transit grain will be moved to Klaipeda effective October 4. At the same time, Telus once again emphasized that Ukrainian grain will not reach Poland.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced the creation of a new grain corridor through Moldova and Romania. "We discussed with the president our possible joint actions to protect not just the ports, but the entire region of Ukraine, Moldova, Romania, and our people. Separately, I would like to note one of the strategic areas of our cooperation. In the triangle of Ukraine, Romania, Moldova, we are able to create a very powerful basis for the development of not only our countries and peoples, but also entire Europe," Zelenskiy said on October 10at a press conference in Bucharest after negotiations with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis. "And soon the grain corridor from Ukraine through Moldova and Romania will start operating. And this is an example of how much we can do together. What will be significant and not only for us, but also for Europe and the world as a whole," the Ukrainian leader said.
Almost 60% of Ukrainian grain exports transit through Romania. Nearly 60% of the total volume of Ukrainian grain exports transit through Romania, the country's president Klaus Iohannis said in Bucharest on Oct. 10.
● Products
Europe continues to import over $14 billion of Russian raw materials. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the European Union has continued to import billions of euros worth of "critical" raw materials from Russia, media outlet Investigate Europe highlighted in a report on Oct. 24.
41 UKRAINE Country Report November 2023 www.intellinews.com