The European Commission has agreed to work on changes to the European Union’s agreement with Ukraine on the road transport of goods demanded by Polish truckers, the Polish infrastructure ministry said on Tuesday.
A revision of the agreement that removed most restrictions for drivers transporting goods between Ukraine and the European Union was among the key demands of Polish truckers, who blocked a number of border crossings with Ukraine for several weeks around the turn of the year.
“The European Commission has started the procedure for revising the European Union-Ukraine Agreement on the transport of goods by road,” the ministry said in a statement.
In November, Polish truckers blocked border crossings with Ukraine, protesting what they said was unfair competition from their Ukrainian counterparts.
They were demanding that the EU reinstate permits for Ukrainian transportation companies to operate in the bloc and for European truckers entering Ukraine, which were suspended in 2022 along with customs duties, in a bid to help Kyiv following Russia’s invasion.
After the Warsaw government promised to support their demands in negotiations with Brussels and explore EU financial support for the affected Polish transportation companies, the protest was put on hold in January.
“We managed to convince our partners of the need to work on the revision of this agreement, which has become one of the main reasons for protests by Polish carriers,” the statement quoted Infrastructure Minister Dariusz Klimczak as saying.
“The European Commission has started the procedure for revising the European Union-Ukraine Agreement on the transport of goods by road,” the ministry said in a statement.
In November, Polish truckers blocked border crossings with Ukraine, protesting what they said was unfair competition from their Ukrainian counterparts.
They were demanding that the EU reinstate permits for Ukrainian transportation companies to operate in the bloc and for European truckers entering Ukraine, which were suspended in 2022 along with customs duties, in a bid to help Kyiv following Russia’s invasion.
After the Warsaw government promised to support their demands in negotiations with Brussels and explore EU financial support for the affected Polish transportation companies, the protest was put on hold in January.
“We managed to convince our partners of the need to work on the revision of this agreement, which has become one of the main reasons for protests by Polish carriers,” the statement quoted Infrastructure Minister Dariusz Klimczak as saying.
Source: Reuters
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