Ukrainian Border Guard Service comments on Poland-Ukraine border situation
Andriy Demchenko, spokesman for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (mediacenter org ua)
The situation on the Polish-Ukrainian border today is different from yesterday. Polish farmers have started letting cars and buses through, but there are thousands of trucks in the queues, according to Andrii Demchenko, a spokesperson for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine.
He notes that Polish farmers are blocking six directions on the border with Ukraine. As of this morning, about 2,500 trucks are queuing up in Poland.
"Today's situation is somewhat different from yesterday. Unfortunately, yesterday Polish farmers scaled up their actions. They almost completely blocked the possibility of movement for trucks both leaving Poland and those moving towards Poland. The only direction that remained open was the Krakivets checkpoint," says the spokesperson.
Demchenko also notes that yesterday farmers blocked the movement of cars and buses at three checkpoints. Currently, traffic has been restored in both directions. However, trucks are allowed to cross at a rate of several vehicles per hour.
According to the spokesperson, the movement of trucks from Ukraine to Poland at the Yahodyn checkpoint is blocked.
At the same time, the blockade on the Polish border is also causing queues at checkpoints with other countries to grow.
"In recent days, the queue waiting to cross the border towards Ukraine in Slovakia and Hungary has been growing... As of this morning, about 600 trucks were in line in Slovakia opposite the Uzhhorod checkpoint. And about 750 trucks in Hungary opposite the Tisa checkpoint. But the traffic at these checkpoints is intense," explains Demchenko.
Ukraine-Poland situation
In November 2023, Polish carriers went on strike at the border with Ukraine. In January, the border was unblocked when the Polish government signed an agreement with the carriers.
In February, protests on the Polish-Ukrainian border resumed. Farmers are blocking the checkpoints, and recently they declared a "total blockade" of the border and began pouring out Ukrainian grain.
The Polish government has threatened to impose new restrictions on imports from Ukraine if a deal is not reached.
Read more about the Polish-Ukrainian border situation in RBC-Ukraine's report.
