Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki warned on Tuesday that the import of Ukrainian grain would not be allowed, despite decisions on this matter from Brussels. “We will not open our borders,” he concluded. “Poland will not allow us to be flooded with Ukrainian grain,” Morawiecki announced shortly before the European Union’s current import restrictions on wheat, corn, rapeseed and sunflowers expire this Friday. Given the tensions that this has created in the good relations between Warsaw and Kiev, which have increased after the invasion of Ukraine, Morawiecki argued that the interests of the Polish people come first, while recalling that his country was the most important reception center for Ukrainian refugees. For his part, Minister of Agriculture Robert Telus has stated that Poland will not stop the movement of Ukrainian grain through its territory to other European markets and third countries, especially in Africa. He, in turn, trusts that the EU will allow another extension and will not have to act unilaterally. “We are convinced that the EU will allow an extension,” Telus said in statements to Polish radio. “We will support the transit of Ukrainian grain to countries where there are shortages, but we do not want it to reach Poland. We know the turmoil this has caused in the market,” he reasoned. However, he warned that if this was not the case they would act “by force” as “the interests of Polish farmers” were at stake. The European Commission banned imports of wheat, corn, rapeseed and sunflowers from Ukraine to Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Romania after warning of the problems the measure could have on their domestic sector. On June 5, the veto was extended until September 15, 2023, but they want to extend it until the end of the year and even expand it to other products. The decision comes just over a month before Poland’s October 15 parliamentary elections. Farmers are an important voter base for the ultra-conservative Law and Justice party (PiS), which is seeking a third term.
