Poland and Lithuania have welcomed the proposal put forth by the European Commission (EC) on Friday to impose tariffs on grain products from Russia and Belarus. Adam Szłapka, the Polish minister to the European Union (EU), said that the introduction of EU tariffs on grain imports from these two countries would be “a great help for farmers.”
“Sanctions could not be introduced because this requires unanimity,” he explained, adding that there was “one country” which opposed sanctions, in an apparent reference to Hungary, which has a history of saying “no” to European sanctions on Russia or support for Ukraine.
“The decision to introduce a 50% tariff on these products was basically decided as these tariffs are prohibitive,” he continued. “This in practice eliminates the import of these products from Russia and Belarus,” he added.
Lithuania urges tariffs on other agri products
Similarly, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda has also welcomed the EC’s proposal but has additionally urged the Commission to consider imposing import tariffs on other agricultural products.
“I welcome the Commission’s proposals, which are certainly timely, but I would urge it not to stop there, to go one step further and introduce tariffs on other agricultural products,” Nausėda said while addressing reporters in Brussels on Friday.
“We have a very clear case of Russia deliberately attacking us with cheap grain in an attempt to destabilize our agricultural product market, to cause discontent among farmers, to create political instability. Of course, we must take steps to prevent this,” he added.
Under World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, agricultural exports from Russia have thus far been exempted from any EU import duties.Russian grain should be blocked from free flowing into #EU.
— Gitanas Nausėda (@GitanasNauseda) March 21, 2024
It's scandalous that Russia is currently among the top grain suppliers in Europe.
This must stop. pic.twitter.com/bn9o1RKpdw
The proposed import duties on Russian and Belarusian grain would effectively result in a ban on their import into the bloc, stated the Lithuanian Agriculture Minister Kęstutis Navickas.
EC’s proposal
Earlier in the day, the European Commission proposed increasing the tariffs on imports into the EU of cereals, oilseeds, and grain products from Russia and Belarus, including wheat, maize, and sunflower meal.
The Commission’s proposal follows the joint urging from Lithuania, along with Latvia, Estonia, Poland, and the Czech Republic, on Wednesday, for the EU’s executive body to enforce a full ban on grain imports from Russia and Belarus.We are proposing to increase the tariffs on imports into the EU of cereals, oilseeds, and derived grain products from Russia and Belarus.
— European Commission (@EU_Commission) March 22, 2024
These tariffs, while high enough to suppress such imports into the EU in practice, would not affect exports to third countries.
According to the Commission’s data, 4.8 million tons of grain, valued at EUR 1.5 billion, were imported into the EU from Russia and Belarus last year.
