Polish farmers threaten to block Medyka-Shehyni border crossing point
Polish farmers threaten to block Medyka-Shehyni border crossing point (Getty Images)
Polish farmers may reinstate the blockade at the Medyka - Shehyni border crossing if they do not receive written confirmation of their demands being met, according to Polska Agencja Prasowa.
"If we do not receive written confirmation that our demands will be met, we will reinstate the blockade," said Roman Kondrow, the leader of the protesting farmers.
The farmers initiated their protest on November 23, 2023 and suspended it on December 24, 2023. The day before, Minister of Agriculture Lesław Sekerski arrived at Medyka - Shehyni and assured farmers that their demands would be met.
The demands include:
- Inclusion of subsidies for corn.
- Increase in the amount of liquid loans for farmers.
- Maintaining the agricultural tax at the level of the previous year.
Kondrow said that he has not yet received written assurances that the demands will be met.
"We want to receive such assurances in written form, and I will discuss this on Wednesday, in particular, with Deputy Minister of Agriculture Stefan Krajewski... It is important for us to receive written assurance that our demands will be met. If the minister cannot provide such assurance, let the prime minister do it," he added.
If negotiations on Wednesday do not yield results, farmers will block the checkpoint again.
Polish border blockade
On November 6, Polish carriers began strikes at the border with Ukraine. The action was planned to continue until the beginning of January 2024. During the protest, several directions were blocked, allowing only one truck per hour to pass. Later, the Medyka - Shehyni checkpoint was also blocked.
On December 22, Ukrainian and Polish officials agreed on a plan to unblock border checkpoints. Polish representatives planned to unblock the border by the end of 2023.
