Polish PM pledges to address Polish Sejm on blocking Russian and Belarusian agricultural products

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has announced an address to the Polish Sejm (the lower chamber of the Polish parliament) to discuss sanctioning Russian and Belarusian agricultural products.

Source: European Pravda, citing Delfi, a news website in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia

Details: "A minute ago, I informed the [Lithuanian] prime minister that today I would address the Marshal of the Polish Sejm regarding the introduction of sanctions on Russian and Belarusian agricultural products," Tusk said after meeting with Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė.

The Polish official added that a joint EU decision on sanctions against Russian and Belarusian agricultural products is essential.

"It is not only about strengthening sanctions because of [Russia’s] invasion of Ukraine and Belarus' cooperation with Russia but also stepping up protection of the agricultural sector in Lithuania and Poland," the Polish prime minister said.

He stressed that one of the EU's main tasks should be to block the export of Russian and Belarusian agricultural products.

"The markets really face great pressure because of the war. And undoubtedly, one of the main tasks is to block exports from Russia and Belarus to countries that have long been recipients of these products," Tusk said.

For her part, Šimonytė echoed Tusk's sentiments, but stressed that this should be a joint decision of the EU countries, otherwise Russia will find ways to circumvent such restrictions.

Background:

• At the end of February, Tusk suggested that Poland might impose a ban on imports of Russian agricultural products, following Latvia's example.
• On 22 February, the Latvian parliament passed a temporary ban on imports of agricultural products from Russia and Belarus until at least July 2025. Latvia stated that this step seeks to sever economic ties with the aggressor countries and complements EU sanctions.
• On 31 January, Latvian Prime Minister Evika Siliņa noted that her country was setting an example for others by banning grain imports from Russia and Belarus.

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