Poland might grant Ukraine 20,000 more road cargo transport permits - deputy minister

KYIV. May 18 (Interfax-Ukraine) - Ukraine could receive 20,000 more permits for cargo transportation from Poland in summer if it complies with Poland's requirements, Ukrainian Deputy Infrastructure Minister Mustafa Nayem said.

"I hope we will be able to comply with the requirements set by the Polish side to receive 20,000 extra permits as early as this coming summer. It's primarily about separating the passenger and cargo flows at the Krakivets border crossing point. I hope we'll delight everyone within the next month," Nayem said during an online conference on Ukrainian economy.

Another requirement is the increase of cargo throughput capacity of the Budomierz and Nyzhankovychi border points, he said.

"If these two requirements are met, Poland will issue us another 20,000 permits, plus 20,000 permits more if we comply with the requirements of a Polish loan on the Krakivets, Shehyni, and Rava-Ruska checkpoints," he said.

"Even with the trends we have now, the Polish permits will possibly expire in October," he said.

"This could be a disaster. And we do hope that we are close to finalizing the clearance procedure of a transport liberalization agreement we're signing with the EU. This is a European visa-free arrangement for our transport, which would enable us to travel through all EU countries with which we have a common border without permits. We've been seeking this since last October," he said.

As reported earlier, the Ukrainian State Service for Transport Safety has lifted the quantitative limit on Poland's automobile transportation permits under the 2022 quota.

The Ukrainian Infrastructure Ministry and the Polish Infrastructure and Development Ministry agreed earlier to cancel permits for automobiles engaged in international fuel transportation.