Romania to allow Ukrainian grain imports
Romania will not ban the import of Ukrainian grain for now, waiting for the authorities in Kiev to propose a licensing system for four agricultural products that have been banned so far, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said on Monday.
If export requests to Romania arise, Bucharest will extend import restrictions for a period of 30 days.
In the event of such a move, the Romanian prime minister announced that he would ask the ministers of agriculture and economy for a joint order to extend the ban on the import of Ukrainian grain for a period of 30 days.
“First and foremost, there was a discussion that I had on Saturday and Sunday with the Ukrainian prime minister and the Commission. You saw. The Commission requested that a licensing system be put in place for the export of grain to EU countries. Following the same logic, the Ukrainian prime minister also came, saying that there will still need to be rigorous controls. Until now, since the Commission has decided not to extend the ban, not a single kilogram of wheat or anything else has been imported into Romania,” Ciolacu said.
The European Commission announced on Friday that it would not extend the ban on imports of Ukrainian grain to the five EU states bordering Ukraine. However, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary have said they will continue to ban imports of Ukrainian grain. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the decision, but stressed that “Ukraine will respond in a civilized way” to countries that violate EU law.
Farmers in the five countries bordering Ukraine have repeatedly complained about a surplus of products that is affecting domestic prices and pushing them to bankruptcy.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
