The problems of farmers in countries bordering Ukraine caused by cheap Ukrainian grain imports can only be solved with a common, European approach as unilateral measures only benefit Ukraine's opponents, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a letter to five EU countries.

Von der Leyen’s letter was a response to a letter sent to her by the leaders of Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the EU in May 2022 suspended customs duties for all commodities imported from Ukraine for a period of one year.

Due to the Russian blockade of Black Sea ports, the EU organised so-called solidarity lanes on border crossings with Ukraine to enable a faster passage of Ukrainian grains towards third countries. However, a significant portion of the grains ended up in storage facilities in EU countries that border Ukraine, driving down prices and causing dissatisfaction among their farmers.

Poland, where parliamentary elections are to be held in the autumn and whose ruling coalition depends largely on the support of people in rural areas, was the first to impose a ban on Ukrainian grain imports.

A major problem for the transit of Ukrainian agricultural products towards third countries are logistical costs, which account for as much as 40% of the value of the goods, EC officials say.

Von der Leyen said on Wednesday that an additional, €100 million package of aid to farmers in those countries was being prepared. Last month the EC approved €56.3 million in aid to those farmers.

Von der Leyen said that solidarity lanes were crucial for Ukraine’s resistance to the Russian aggressor and that it was necessary to make sure Ukrainian farm products reached world markets, including developing countries.

We now need to deal with concrete unwanted consequences of the unexpected increase in imports to your countries, she said in the letter to the five EU members.

EC Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis, in charge of trade, is holding talks with the competent ministers from the five countries to try and find a solution that would solve the problems of their farmers while ensuring further support to Ukraine.