MOSCOW, September 15 Poland threatened to unilaterally order to violate the rules of the European Union and ban the import of grain from Ukraine if Brussels itself does not extend the restrictions until the end of the year, writes the American edition of The Wall Street Journal.
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"Kiev warned that it would appeal to the World Trade Organization for compensation, if the restriction is not lifted,” the material added.
As noted in the publication, EU authorities must decide on Friday whether to extend the ban on the sale of Ukrainian wheat in neighboring countries of the bloc to prevent a sharp drop in prices. The issue has already caused a serious rift between Kiev and Warsaw, where the government wants to enlist the support of farmers ahead of parliamentary elections.
Export of agricultural products remains the most important part of the Ukrainian economy. Last year, he allowed Kiev to earn about $27 billion, which is half of the republic’s total export income.
At the end of March, five EU states bordering Ukraine (Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia) appealed to the head European Commission Ursula von der Leyen with a request to intervene in the crisis caused by the influx of grain from Ukraine. The EC has adopted temporary restrictive measures aimed at eliminating logistical difficulties associated with these products in the border countries of the union. They came into force on May 2 and were extended in June until September 15.
The restrictions mean that wheat, corn, rapeseed and sunflower seeds of Ukrainian origin can continue to be transferred for free circulation in all EU countries except five border states. In parallel, these countries pledged to cancel their unilateral measures against agricultural products supplied by Kiev.
The European Commission has repeatedly emphasized that restrictive measures are temporary and will be lifted as soon as logistics problems are resolved.