Slovakia could ban imports of some agricultural products from Ukraine

MOSCOW. April 11 (Interfax) - Slovakia is not against the transit of agricultural products from Ukraine, but intends to protect its national interests, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said.

"Slovakia provides corridors and free passage of agricultural products that will go from Ukraine to other European countries. I also explained to Mr. Prime Minister how important it is for us to protect the interests of our agricultural workers and farmers. If we do not find a joint solution, then there will simply be a ban on 14 product positions that will not be imported from Ukraine," Fico said at a joint briefing with Ukraine's Prime Minister Denis Shmygal on Thursday which was broadcast on YouTube.

In many EU countries, including Slovakia, there have been periodic mass protests by agricultural producers this year to express their dissatisfaction with the "green" course taken by the European Commission, as well as the rise in prices of material and technical resources while duty-free agricultural products come into their countries from Ukraine.

The duty-free trade regime between Ukraine and the EU, introduced in 2022, which reorients a significant part of Ukrainian agricultural exports to Europe, led to cheap food finding its way from Ukraine onto the markets of neighboring countries. The greatest damage was caused to the agricultural sectors of Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria.