Polish strikers extended the blockade of the border until February 1 — Ukraineʼs economy has already suffered losses of €400 million

Polish carriers will continue the blockade of the "Yagodin-Dorogusk" checkpoint on the Ukrainian-Polish border until February 1, 2024. This was reported by one of the leaders of the strikers, Rafal Mekler.

According to him, the protesters submitted another application, because earlier they planned the strike until January.

Mekler also announced the expansion of the blockade to the fourth checkpoint — "Medyka — Sheghini". The strike will begin there on November 23.

Losses for the Ukrainian economy

According to the assessment of the Federation of Employers of Ukraine, the losses suffered by the Ukrainian economy due to the Polish protesters already amount to more than €400 million.

Volodymyr Balin, vice-president of the Association of International Carriers, announced this during a briefing on November 22.

"The situation is really critical. I am not ready to say how other industries are suffering, although according to the Federation of Employers of Ukraine, already today our economy has suffered losses of more than €400 million. We record the losses of our carriers from the calculation of lost revenue — €350 per single, per day," he said.

• On November 6, Polish carriers staged a strike at the border with Ukraine, blocking three checkpoints for the passage of trucks: "Korchova — Krakowiec", "Grebenne — Rava-Ruska" and "Dorogusk — Yagodin". The picketers are demanding a ban on the registration of transport companies with foreign capital in Poland, as a result of which Polish entrepreneurs are being pushed out of the market.
• After negotiations , Polish carriers refused to stop blocking the border with Ukraine and rejected the joint proposals of the European Commission, Ukraine and Poland. A key demand of the protesters is a return to the permit system. The Ukrainian side stated that this demand cannot be fulfilled, and the Directorate of the European Commission emphasized that such an issue cannot be the subject of this meeting.
• On November 16, Polish colleagues were joined by Slovakian hauliers, who have been protesting against the liberalization of EU rules for Ukrainian trucks for several days.
• According to the latest data from the DPSU, due to the Polish strike , 2,900 trucks, including humanitarian aid, are waiting in queues to enter Ukraine.