NEW YORK: France said on Wednesday that Poland’s decision to ban Ukraine’s grain imports was unfair, amid increasing tensions between Warsaw and Kyiv over the matter.
This was stated by French Foreign Minister Catherina Colonna during an interview with French media. Catherina Colonna said that the tension between the two sides is regrettable. Colonna insisted that Ukrainian grain imports will not cripple European farmers.
France Expresses Regret Poland’s Ban on Ukrainian Grain
In May, the European Union had agreed to restrict imports to Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, and Poland seeking to secure farmers’ interest.
On Friday, the European Commission announced it was ending the import ban, saying that “the market distortions in the five-member nations bordering Ukraine have vanished”. However, Poland, Slovakia, and Poland immediately said that they would defy the decision. AFP reported that the issue is very sensitive in Poland, where elections will be held in next month.
Tensions rose further Wednesday when Poland summoned Ukraine’s envoy over remarks by Ukraine’s President Zelensky at the United Nations. President Zelensky claimed some countries have an artificial sort of solidarity with his country, prompting Poland to condemn remarks “unjustified concerning Warsaw, which has supported Ukraine since the first days of the war.”
Earlier, the Polish prime minister said that his country would no longer arm Kyiv to focus on its own defence capabilities. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that they were no longer transferring arms to Ukraine. He added that they took the decision as they were arming Poland with more modern weapons.
Poland Will Not Provide Arms to Ukraine: Polish Prime Minister
Warsaw has been one of Kyiv’s staunchest supporters after Russia attacked Ukraine in Feb 2022 and is one of Kyiv’s major arms suppliers. Poland also hosts about one million Ukrainian refugees, who have benefited from several kinds of aid in the country.
Tensions between Poland and Ukraine, sparked by Warsaw’s ban on Ukrainian grain imports to secure the interests of its own farmers, have intensified in the last several days.
