EU plans on imposing tariffs on Ukrainian ship-ins
(MENAFN) The European Union is preparing to reintroduce tariffs on Ukrainian agricultural imports as the current duty-free trade arrangement is set to end next month, according to the Financial Times, citing diplomatic sources. In 2022, Brussels suspended import duties and quotas on Ukrainian exports to the EU in response to the escalation of the Ukraine conflict. These Autonomous Trade Measures (ATMs) were extended last year but are due to expire on June 6. The EU has stated that it will not extend the tariff-free regime, which was initially put in place to support Ukraine's economy, due to the influx of cheap imports that caused significant disruptions in Eastern European farming, particularly in Poland.
Following protests from farmers, Brussels introduced an emergency mechanism that would allow tariffs to be reinstated on certain products like poultry, sugar, oats, maize, eggs, and honey, should their imports exceed average annual volumes. This emergency measure is also set to expire in three weeks.
The EU is in the process of updating its free trade agreement with Ukraine, the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA). If these negotiations are not concluded by June 5, "transitional measures" will be applied, extending the talks further.
Poland has urged the EU to delay trade discussions with Ukraine to avoid inflaming domestic discontent ahead of its presidential election on May 18. Nationalist opposition candidate Karol Nawrocki, who is supported by the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, has capitalized on public dissatisfaction with Ukrainian agricultural imports and has criticized Ukraine's potential integration into the EU and NATO.
The proposed transitional measures would sharply reduce the tariff-free quotas on products like maize, poultry, wheat, and sugar. The maize quota, for example, would drop from 4.7 million tonnes to 650,000 tonnes annually. Ukraine’s government has estimated that the reduction in free-trade quotas could result in a loss of about €3.5 billion ($3.9 billion) in revenue per year.
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