Poland in talks with Ukraine on temporarily closing border for trade – PM

Polish PM Donald Tusk says his state and Ukraine are negotiating to close the border between the two countries to trade, according to RMF24.

This will be a "temporary and painful solution for both sides," as Poland sells more to Ukraine than it imports from there, Tusk assures.

"I am ready to make difficult decisions in consultation with Kyiv to avoid unnecessary tension. But we must find a long-term solution."

Poland will demand the return of the volumes of imports of Ukrainian agricultural products that existed before the start of Russia's full-scale war.

"The limits [on the export of Ukrainian goods] proposed by Brussels and Kyiv are unacceptable to us. Poland will propose in Brussels that the base period should not be 2022-2023, but the time before the [full-scale] war."

As part of its plan to de-block the Polish-Ukrainian border, Ukraine proposed to extend duty-free exports of poultry, eggs, and sugar to Poland within the 2022-2023 figures.

The Polish PM also announced an agricultural summit in Warsaw to be held on February 29.

Ukraine has begun technical negotiations with Poland on export licenses, as previously stated by the Polish Minister of Agriculture: this will be a "positive step" towards trade liberalization amid the embargo.

In September, the European Commission announced that it would not extend restrictions on imports of agricultural products from Ukraine after September 15, but Kyiv agreed to take measures to limit imports on its part.

The EU Commission does not see any significant negative consequences of Ukrainian agricultural exports for European markets.

Polish Agriculture Minister Czeslaw Sekerski said that the Polish-Ukrainian border will not be opened for Ukrainian goods, and the embargo on their exports to Poland will be indefinite.