Polish PM to hold talks in Lithuania amid border blockade by farmers

VILNIUS. March 1 (Interfax/BNS) - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will visit Vilnius on Monday after Polish farmers began blocking the Lithuania-Poland border on Friday and Polish authorities began checking trucks coming from Lithuania.

The BNS news agency said that Tusk would meet with Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte and President Gitanas Nauseda.

Having failed to reach an agreement with Tusk, Polish farmers on Friday began partially blocking the road at the former Kalwaria-Budzisk border crossing. Poland previously introduced restrictions on the import of Ukrainian grain, though farmers are concerned that part of it is sent to Lithuania and then imported into Poland under the guise of Lithuanian products.

Inspections of trucks by the Poland's police, customs, and road transport inspectors have begun inspecting trucks with the blocking of the checkpoint.

A nationwide farmers strike started in Poland on February 9. The strikers' main demands include adjusting the European Commission's "green" course, limiting the flow of Ukrainian agricultural products to the Polish market, as well as increasing the profitability of agricultural production. The protests will last 30 days, during which farmers intend to block all Ukraine-Poland border crossings and transport hubs.

Although Tusk has made proposals to protesters, including the possible closure of the border with Ukraine to imported goods, new protests will take place in 270 different locations in Poland.

The agriculture ministers of Lithuania and Poland on Friday have called on farmers to abandon protests, including road closures, and allow authorities in both countries to investigate transit routes and flows of Ukrainian grain destined for Lithuania and transported through Polish territory.

Lithuanian officials reject farmers' accusations of lax control over grain supplies and hope the weeklong blockade will be lifted sooner.