European Union leaders agreed Thursday to impose high tariffs on imports of grain and other agricultural products from Russia and Belarus.
The European Council said in a press release that the “unaffordable” new duties would effectively stop imports of grains, oilseeds and derivatives from the two eastern European countries.
The EU’s grain imports from Moscow have increased since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Figures from the Eurostat statistics office show that imports have grown from less than 120 million euros in 2020 and 290 million euros in 2021 to 440 million euros in 2023. .
Experts fear Russia wants to exploit the ongoing struggles faced by EU farmers by driving down prices with cheap agricultural exports.
The measures are intended to “prevent the destabilization of the EU grain market, halt Russian exports of illegally appropriated grain produced on the territory of Ukraine and prevent Russia from diverting revenues from exports to the EU used to finance its war of aggression against Ukraine,” said the Belgian. Minister of Finance Vincent Van Peteghem.
The new regulation is not expected to affect Russian exports passing through the EU. European leaders want to prevent price increases and scarcity from developing in poorer regions that are more dependent on Russian grain.
