Ukraine was useless: Poles name reasons for blockade of the border with the EU

The protest of Polish protesters blocking the border with Ukraine may end on November 25. They are demanding that the government return the benefits they were promised and terminate the free trade agreement with South America.

According to the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, in general, Poles can block the Medyka-Shehyni checkpoint for 48 hours with possible extensions. This means that at least it will last until 10:00 on November 24.

It is noted that they do not restrict the movement of cars and buses, but 10 trucks have accumulated in front of the protesters to enter Ukraine from the Polish side. Meanwhile, there is no queue of trucks leaving Ukraine.

"The trucks that had been between the protesters and the Polish checkpoint Medyka since yesterday have proceeded to enter the territory of Ukraine," the border guards said.

According to the Polish media outlet RMF FM, on November 24, Polish Minister of Agriculture Czeslaw Sekerski met with the blockers. They explained to him that the border was blocked for two reasons:

• Failure to comply with the requirement to maintain the level of agricultural tax in 2024 at the level of 2023;
• Fears over the signing of a free trade agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay).

Sekerski assured the protesters that his ministry opposes the agreement with Mercosur, but they agreed to end the blockade only if farmers made a specific proposal. The Polish Minister of Agriculture has already discussed the issue of the agreement with Mercosur with his French counterpart Annie Genevère. Poland and France agreed to take joint steps to block the agreement.

As for agricultural subsidies, Czeslaw Sekerski explained that the payment formula has changed and the funds were paid to those farmers who suffered losses in their farms due to bad weather - frost, hail or heavy rains. Meanwhile, according to Polish journalists, a half-kilometer-long queue of 37 trucks has accumulated at the border.

As OBOZ.UA reported, Polish farmers wanted to resume protests at the border in early October. However, the local authorities did not give them permission to do so.

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