Protesting EU truckers to block border crossings with Ukraine
Truck drivers in Poland will block three border crossings with Ukraine on Monday in an effort to attract attention to the damage they suffered due to the EU’s decision to relax the bloc’s regulations for Ukrainian transport companies in 2022.
The protest, scheduled for 12:00pm local time on November 6, is expected to stop trucks traveling through Dorohusk, Hrebenne-Rawa Ruska, and Korczowa, letting through just one lorry an hour, according to a protest notification seen by Reuters.
However, the Polish protesters are reportedly planning to allow the passage of equipment for Ukraine’s army and vehicles transporting livestock.
Their demands include the restoration of previous restrictions on the number of Ukraine-registered lorries that are allowed to enter Poland, as well as the banning of transport companies with capital from outside the bloc.
The outcry echoes similar protests earlier in the year by Polish farmers over the influx of cheap Ukrainian grain, which was driving down prices for local crops. A wide range of businesses in Poland are reportedly deeply concerned about the burden the nation has had to bear for supporting Ukraine.
The blockading of roads is just an opportunity for truckers to stop Ukrainian competitors from crossing the border, according to Kiev’s Deputy Infrastructure Minister Sergey Derkach, who said his nation’s lorries account for 85% of those traversing the border.
An average of between 40,000 and 50,000 trucks cross the border with Poland every month via eight existing crossings, according to the Ukrainian Infrastructure Ministry, which estimates that this is twice as many as before the military conflict with Russia.
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