European Commission does not support unilateral suspension of import of Ukrainian grain to EU countries
The European Commission does not support the decision of the member countries to introduce unilateral restrictions on the import of grain and other food products from Ukraine, it is in contact with the authorities of these countries and Ukraine to study the situation and its constructive solution.
Miriam Garcia Ferrer, spokeswoman for the European Commission on Agriculture and Trade, announced this in Brussels during a briefing, Censor.NET informs with reference to Ukrinform.
"We are already in contact with the relevant authorities in the member states that announced these measures, as well as with the authorities of Ukraine, in order to properly understand the scope of these measures and their legal basis. I would like to remind you that trade policy belongs to the exclusive competence of the EU This means that decisions must be made at the European level, which is why we said that unilateral actions are impossible in accordance with the EU's trade policy," the spokeswoman of the European Commission emphasized.
She reminded that the legal basis for trade relations between the EU and Ukraine is the agreement on a deep and comprehensive free trade area. The EU has just extended the cancellation of tariffs on all goods exported from Ukraine to the EU until the end of the year.
"We now have new proposals on the table on how to extend this suspension, because it is very important to support Ukraine in these very difficult times. Although we are aware of the effect on EU farmers... We are grateful to the border countries for their help in the export of goods from Ukraine, as one of the consequences the war is a blockade of other ways of such export," Ferrer noted.
She reminded that the European Commission, in response to the problem of excessive supply of certain agricultural goods to the EU countries bordering Ukraine, proposed measures to help such countries, in particular for Poland, Bulgaria and Romania. This aid package in the amount of 56 million euros was proposed by the European Commission on March 20 and already on March 30 it was approved at the level of the member states. Currently, the European Commission is working on the second package of such assistance, although it is too early to talk about its scope and modalities, as the work is ongoing. According to the spokeswoman, this second aid package for European farmers, who are experiencing difficulties as a result of Russian aggression against Ukraine, can also be adopted "very quickly".
"We received a letter from 5 EU countries that have a border with Ukraine, in which they asked us to impose certain restrictions and the flow of goods from Ukraine and to take certain measures. We are currently analyzing and verifying these proposals. We need to understand on what legal basis these countries introduced a ban on imports, so it is too early to speculate about the measures that may be taken in this connection," said the spokeswoman of the European Commission.
Answering the question of what measures the European Commission can take against countries that have introduced unilateral restrictions on the export of agricultural goods from Ukraine, the spokesperson of the European Commission, Eric Mamer, noted that in the context when these countries are helping Ukraine, it is worth talking about finding solutions to the existing problem, and not about their hypothetical "punishment".
"We are dealing with a war. This war has consequences for both EU farmers and the people of Ukraine. The EU and its member states, including Poland and other countries bordering Ukraine, are doing everything in their power to help Ukraine, and this is extremely welcome. Our goal is not to create difficulties for the population within the EU when we support Ukraine. So all this is not about imposing sanctions, but about finding a solution based on legislation that applies to both Ukraine and the EU," he emphasized Mamer.
He noted that the European Commission is currently working on relevant proposals for solving the problem together with the Council of the EU and the Swedish Presidency of the European Union, which should be formulated "in the near future".
