On Friday, February 23, near the border with Poland, Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal announced the implementation of the "Plan of Mutual Understanding" designed to unblock the border between the two countries. He emphasized that this plan involves "painful compromises for us."
Shmyhal noted that the border blockade has a negative impact on Ukraine's economy and the country's ability to better defend itself against the Russian aggressor. He emphasized that over the past five months, Ukraine has not exported grain, corn, sunflower seeds and rapeseed to the Polish market, and Ukrainian grain passes through Poland only in transit.
Shmyhal also emphasized that the blockade negatively affects trade between Ukraine and Poland, as well as the general economic situation of both countries. He called for solving this issue and making constructive decisions.
As part of the "Plan of Mutual Understanding", the first step is Ukraine's agreement to limit agricultural exports to the European Union, proposed by the European Commission. Shmyhal explained that these restrictions, which include poultry meat, eggs and sugar, will be applied only if the export volumes exceed the average for 2022 and 2023.
The second step involves screening the quality of Ukrainian agricultural products according to classification clusters related to agrarian policy and transport. This is necessary to avoid manipulation of product quality.
The third step is a call to Poland to join the appeal to the European Commission regarding the termination of Russian agricultural exports to the EU.
The fourth step includes the creation of a "Tripartite Headquarters" with the participation of Ukraine, Poland and the European Commission in order to quickly resolve the issue of the border blockade.
The fifth step involves solving the issue of border crossing not only of military equipment and humanitarian aid, but also of other groups of goods.
Shmyhal emphasized that this plan is a fair approach and beneficial for both parties, and called for a constructive dialogue.
