Ukrainian minister’s ‘friendly relations’ warning over ‘unacceptable’ grain sabotage
The spoiling of Ukrainian grain on the Polish border is “unacceptable”, Kyiv’s foreign minister has said, warning perpetrators must be held to account “for the sake of friendly relations”.
Polish farmers reportedly forced trucks open and spilled grain onto the road today, as protests continue over cheap imports from Ukraine.
Dmytro Kubela condemned the incident and called on Polish authorities to act in a post on X this afternoon.
“The spoiling of Ukrainian grain on the Polish border is unacceptable,” he said.
“Any farmer should know how much hard work it takes to produce grain, especially during wartime.
“For the sake of friendly Ukrainian-Polish relations, the perpetrators of this provocation must be held to account.”
Farmers began blocking roads with Ukraine on Friday, kicking off a month-long general strike to protest against EU policies and a lack of government action to protect their livelihoods.
Polish government representatives say they understand the challenges farmers are facing and help for Ukraine should not come at the expense of Polish farmers.
It comes on the day Poland plans to start quality checks on all grain shipments from Ukraine, with the country’s deputy agriculture minister claiming most imports deemed not good enough in Germany end up returning to Poland.
Farmers across Europe – including in France, Belgium, Portugal, Greece, Spain and Germany – have been protesting against rising costs and what they say is unfair competition from abroad.
