Posted on March, 18, 2024 at 09:37 am
The European Commission announced today (15 March) that it will unveil measures to deal with the surge in imports of Russian agricultural products, particularly cereals, into the EU.
According to a statement released by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, they engaged in an “in-depth discussion” on a highly anticipated set of agricultural proposals aimed at addressing the demands of protesting farmers across Europe by easing the environmental requirements of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
The discussion between the two leaders also covered the state of the bloc’s grain markets and the impact of cereal imports from Russia.
“The European Commission is evaluating the possibility of introducing restrictions on imports of agricultural products from Russia to the European Union. On this basis the Commission will come forward with a proposal shortly,” reads the text.
Details of the discussions were provided after EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski, decided to announce the adoption of the European-wide measures in his native Poland.
Wojchiechowski faces mounting pressure from the Polish government and his national party, Law and Justice (PiS), to resign amidst the widespread farmer protests across Europe in recent months.
On Friday morning, he held a press conference in Warsaw for Polish-speaking journalists, during which he addressed the issue of Russian grain and its impact on EU markets.
“When Russia uses food as a weapon, we must react. Russia will export over 50 million tons of wheat. When one country has a quarter of all wheat exports, it can destabilise the situation. And this is what we see,” he told journalists.
While imports of food and fertilisers have been exempt from the EU’s wartime sanctions on Moscow, since the conflict began in 2022, to preserve global food security, the Commission has faced increasing pressure from EU leaders and lawmakers to impose trade restrictions.
Last month, Latvia introduced a unilateral trade ban on Russian agricultural imports, and Tusk suggested similar measures could be taken in Poland.
Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) across the political spectrum endorsed the idea of restrictions on Russian agri-food products. During a debate in Strasbourg on Tuesday, they highlighted the potential role of such trade in financing the war against Ukraine.
However, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson, who spoke on behalf of EU diplomatic chief Josep Borrell, cautioned against potential distortions resulting from sanctions on Russian food, leading to market distortions and resulting in higher food prices for countries in the Global South that rely on Russian imports.
Source: Euractiv