EU agree to impose new duties on imports of agricultural products and fertilizers from Russia and Belarus

Representatives of EU countries have agreed to impose additional duties on agricultural products and nitrogen fertilizers from Russia and Belarus.

This proposal of the European Commission will now be submitted to the European Parliament for consideration, according to a press release on the EU Council website.

“The tariffs are expected to reduce revenues from Russian exports, thereby limiting Russia’s ability to finance its aggressive war against Ukraine,” the statement said.

In general, it is planned to introduce additional duties on agricultural products, which accounted for 15% of all imports of such goods from Russia in 2023. After the new tariffs come into force, all imports of agricultural products from Russia will be subject to EU duties.

In addition, additional duties will be imposed on Russian fertilizers. In 2023, imports of the respective fertilizers from Russia accounted for more than 25% of total EU imports (about 3.6 million tons worth €1.28 billion).

These duties are aimed at reducing the EU’s dependence on Russia and Belarus and increasing domestic production. They will also help diversify fertilizer supplies from third countries. The increase in fertilizer tariffs will be gradual, over a three-year transition period.

At the same time, measures are planned to mitigate the impact on EU farmers in the event of a significant increase in fertilizer prices.

“We will closely monitor the implementation of these tariffs to ensure the protection of the EU fertilizer industry and farmers, while reducing EU dependence, preserving global food security and further weakening the Russian military economy,” commented Krzysztof Paszyk, Minister of Development and Technology of Poland.

After the European Parliament approves the introduction of duties, the final decision will be approved by the EU Council.

As reported, in January, the European Commission initiated the introduction of duties on a number of agricultural products, as well as some nitrogen fertilizers from Russia and Belarus.

Currently, Russia is the world’s largest exporter of fertilizers with a share of about 18% of the global market. This sector of the Russian industry has not been affected by the sanctions at all, but it faces certain problems due to disruptions in logistics and payments.

At the same time, the production and export of Russian fertilizers is growing, as local producers take advantage of low domestic prices for raw materials such as natural gas.

Earlier, Svein Tore Holseter, CEO of Yara International, one of the world’s largest producers of nitrogen fertilizers, said that Europe is gradually becoming dependent on Russian fertilizers, as it was with Russian gas. On the other hand, increasing fertilizer production allows Moscow to partially compensate for the loss of the European gas market.

Tags: Russia, EU, fertilizers