Ukraine has announced its intention to take legal action against Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia following their bans on Ukrainian agricultural products. Taras Kachka, Ukraine’s Trade Representative, revealed this plan in an interview published by Politico on Monday.
In May, the European Union (EU) implemented restrictions that allowed Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia to prohibit the domestic sale of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed, and sunflower seeds while permitting the transit of these products for export to other destinations.
However, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary independently imposed additional restrictions on Ukrainian grain imports after the European Commission decided not to extend the EU’s ban on imports into Ukraine’s neighboring countries.
Officials from Warsaw, Bratislava, and Budapest argue that their actions are motivated by the need to safeguard their domestic economies and protect their farmers from an oversupply of Ukrainian agricultural products.
Taras Kachka emphasized the importance of demonstrating that these actions are legally unjustifiable, stating, “It is important to prove that these actions are legally wrong. And that’s why we will start legal proceedings tomorrow,” as quoted by Politico.
He further mentioned that if Warsaw did not lift its additional measures, Ukraine might resort to reciprocal measures. Kachka explained, “We would be forced to retaliate on the additional products and would prohibit the import of fruit and vegetables from Poland.”
Ukraine had previously hinted at the possibility of seeking international arbitration to address these trade restrictions.
The EU’s ban on exports to neighboring countries expired on Friday after Ukraine committed to implementing measures to enhance control over its exports to these nations. Kachka assured that Kyiv was prepared to assume responsibility for ensuring that Ukrainian exports did not cause disruptions in neighboring countries. Ukraine plans to implement a “real-time” system of export licenses for grain products as part of this effort.