EU urges Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland to lift unilateral bans on Ukrainian farm exports

The European Commission will hold talks with Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland to persuade them to drop unilateral restrictions on certain Ukrainian agricultural exports now that a renewed EU-Ukraine trade deal has taken effect. Deputy Chief Spokesperson Olof Gill made the announcement at a press conference in Brussels on 31 October.

The updated Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) agreement entered into force on 29 October. Brussels believes it strikes the right balance: supporting Ukraine’s economy with preferential access while protecting sensitive EU sectors, especially agri-food.

“To be absolutely clear,” Gill said, “the renewed DCFTA provides vital economic support to Ukraine through favorable trading conditions and reliable, adequate safeguards for sensitive EU sectors. We see no reason to extend the export bans.”

He confirmed that lifting the remaining national restrictions is the Commission’s sole priority for now. Formal dialogue with the three member states will begin immediately.

Asked whether the EU might pursue legal action to enforce compliance, Gill replied: “We will only consider other options if these negotiations fail to deliver the desired result.”

Kyiv has welcomed the Commission’s stance. According to European Pravda, the Office of the President of Ukraine expects a swift and decisive response should any country maintain unilateral measures. Ukraine insists that the EU Single Market rules and the Association Agreement must be respected without exception and reserves the right to choose appropriate legal countermeasures.

A heavy background

The tensions between Ukraine and certain EU member states over agricultural exports stem from the economic fallout of Russia’s 2022 invasion, which disrupted Ukraine’s traditional Black Sea export routes for grain and other commodities. As one of the world’s top grain producers, Ukraine pivoted to overland routes through neighboring EU countries – primarily Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria – creating a sudden influx of cheaper Ukrainian products into Central and Eastern European markets.

This “glut” suppressed local prices, hurting farmers’ incomes in these “frontline five” states, where agriculture is a key economic sector and political voting bloc.

In response, these countries imposed unilateral import bans starting in April 2023, initially targeting grains like wheat, maize, rapeseed, and sunflower seeds, while allowing transit to third countries

The EU, to balance support for Ukraine with domestic pressures, introduced temporary Autonomous Trade Measures (ATMs) in May 2023, suspending tariffs and quotas for Ukrainian exports but authorizing these five states to ban domestic sales of sensitive products until September 2023.

When the EU declined to extend the ATMs in September 2023, Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia defied Brussels by enacting their own extended bans, covering up to 24 product categories including meat, honey, and eggs—measures that violated EU single market rules on trade policy.

These actions fuelled protests by farmers and truckers, border blockades (stranding over 1,000 trucks), and political rhetoric, exacerbating EU divisions amid elections in Poland (2023) and Slovakia (late 2023).

Ukraine retaliated by filing WTO complaints against the three holdouts in September 2023, threatening counter-tariffs on Polish and Hungarian goods like apples and poultry.

The EU provided compensatory aid (e.g., €100 million in May 2023 for affected farmers), but tensions persisted, with bans renewed into 2024 and 2025, undermining solidarity for Ukraine.

Why the renewed DCFTA makes things easier

The original DCFTA, provisionally applied since 2016 as part of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, already eliminated most tariffs on industrial goods and gradually liberalized agriculture, boosting bilateral trade to €67.2 billion in 2024 (more than double pre-DCFTA levels) and creating a positive agricultural trade balance for Ukraine.

In essence, the renewed DCFTA shifts from emergency, one-sided ATMs to a balanced, enforceable deal that mitigates risks for EU farmers (e.g., via safeguards and standards) while securing Ukraine’s economic lifeline – potentially resolving holdout bans through dialogue or infringement proceedings. This reciprocity and predictability make compliance easier for all parties, though Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia’s ongoing resistance highlights lingering political hurdles.

Caption: A farmer at work in a field near Kharkiv, Ukraine, 29 March 2025, amid the ongoing Russian invasion. EPA/SERGEY KOZLOV