Poland took a week to review Ukraineʼs grain export plan. Kyiv is urged to withdraw its complaint to the WTO

Ukraine and Poland held negotiations regarding the licensing procedure for agricultural products, in particular grain, proposed by the Ukrainian side. The Polish government is ready to study the Ukrainian proposal and took a week to do so.

This was reported by the ministries of agriculture of both countries.

The Polish Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Robert Telus insists that Ukrainian grain "does not flow to Poland" and Ukraine takes note of this. Next week, Minister of Agrarian Policy Mykola Solskyi and Telus will meet and once again discuss the licensing procedure.

Telus separately offered Ukraine to withdraw the complaint filed with the World Trade Organization.

Solskyi said that in the coming days there will be a tripartite meeting of the ministers of agriculture of Ukraine, Poland and Lithuania, where they will discuss the transfer of veterinary control to the territory of the country of export destination, which should simplify transit through Poland. In August, Hungary and Slovakia agreed to such a control mechanism.

Telus confirmed the control discussion.

"Now we are at the final stage of negotiations with Lithuania to transfer control from the Ukrainian-Polish border to the port in Lithuania. We are talking about control that will guarantee that the grain will leave the EU. The Ukrainian minister also suggested that the same control be transferred to the German side, so that it is carried out not on our common border, but in German ports. We will consider and discuss these issues," he noted in a comment to "Radio Svoboda".

• Disputes between Poland and Ukraine flared up after Warsaw extended the ban on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products, although the European Union lifted the restrictions on September 15.
• In addition to Poland, Slovakia and Hungary unilaterally extended the embargo on Ukrainian grain. Because of this, Ukraine is preparing a claim to arbitration at the World Trade Organization (WTO).
• On September 19, at the request of the European Commission, Ukraine changed the rules of grain export, and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal offered a compromise to Poland and Hungary.
• On September 21, the Minister of Agrarian Policy of Ukraine agreed with his Polish colleague to find a solution regarding the import of grain that takes into account the interests of both countries. On the same day, the Ukrainian side agreed with Slovakia on the grain trade system.
• On September 28, Ukraine and EU countries will meet in Brussels to resolve the grain issue.