Polish farmers will block the borders from February 9

Polish farmers have announced a new nationwide strike. It will begin on February 9 and last until March 10. This was reported by the independent farmers’ trade union Solidarity, which initiated the blockade.

“Our patience is over. The position of Brussels on the last day of January 2024 is unacceptable to our entire agricultural community,” the statement said.

The trade union noted that the passivity of the Polish authorities, declarations of cooperation with the European Commission, statements about compliance with all EC decisions on imports of agricultural products and food from Ukraine “leave us no choice but to declare a general strike.”

The protest action involves blocking all border crossings between Poland and Ukraine, as well as roads and highways throughout the country. The strike will begin at 10:00 a.m. on February 9.

Border blockade

In the afternoon of November 6, Polish carriers began blocking the movement of freight transport in the direction of three checkpoints – Yagodyn-Dorohusk, Krakivets-Korchova, and Rava-Ruska-Hrebenne. The next day, the protesters completely blocked the passage of trucks at two checkpoints on the border with Ukraine.

The farmers demanded the return of permits for Ukrainian carriers, which were canceled as part of the agreement signed with the EU on the liberalization of road transport. They also demanded that registration in the eCheck for empty Polish trucks be canceled.

On November 23, Polish farmers joined the strikes at the border.

On December 11, Polish carriers ended their strike at the Yahodyn-Dorohusk checkpoint. The customs office started working as usual, and truck traffic resumed in both directions. On the same day, a Polish truck blocked traffic in front of the checkpoint again. After a warning from Polish law enforcement, the truck was removed.

At 15:00 on December 18, Polish carriers again blocked truck traffic at the Yahodyn-Dorohusk international checkpoint.

On January 16, 2024, the Polish Ministry of Infrastructure signed an agreement with the blockers of the checkpoints on the border with Ukraine, and the protest is suspended until March 1.

Tags: Poland, protests