Instead of three - one billion: agrarians estimated losses after the completion of the trade agreement with the EU

The termination of the duty-free trade agreement with the European Union will cost Ukraine about 1 billion euros in losses. At the same time, there are further risks due to pressure from individual EU countries that demand a review of the agreements. Statements by Poland, Romania, and Hungary that Ukrainian agricultural products harm European farmers are often based on myths spread under the influence of hostile Russian propaganda. The Ukrainian side is working to convey the real picture to European partners and maintain access to markets. Denys Marchuk, Deputy Head of the Ukrainian Agrarian Council, said this during a briefing, as reported by a correspondent of UNN.

Details

Commenting on the termination of the trade agreement with the European Union, Marchuk noted that "the challenges for farmers are financial losses, direct and immediate."

Regarding the agreement itself, its results turned out to be better than expected at the beginning of June. This became possible thanks to lengthy negotiations, which concluded only about a week ago – that's when the final agreements were announced.

There are indicators for sensitive products, they will actually, well, let's say, be worse compared to 2023, 2022, when we had a larger export of agricultural products, but slightly better than what it was before the full-scale invasion

At the same time, as Marchuk emphasizes, the situation is complicated by statements from a number of EU countries, including Poland, Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia. They seek a review of the agreement, arguing that Ukrainian agricultural goods allegedly threaten producers in Europe itself. Despite this, after the signing of the new agreement, the projected losses decreased.

Because we thought we would lose about three billion euros because of this. Now we have calculated that the losses will be about 1 billion euros, but the risks that such statements entail can further lead to a review. Therefore, we are now paying a lot of attention to working with and communicating with national associations of the European Union, France, Poland, Italy, in order to show and convince them that what you are proclaiming does not actually correspond to reality

He stressed that most of these myths are imposed by propaganda, including at the expense of the enemy, who continues to put pressure on the European information field.

Marchuk explained that when it comes to specific figures and real economic opportunities for cooperation, it becomes obvious: partnership is beneficial to both sides and can develop, including through expanding exports to new markets.

Addition

On June 30, the European Commission and Ukraine reached a principled agreement on the revision of the free trade area, which will facilitate Ukraine's integration into the EU single market. The modernized agreement includes level playing field provisions, safeguard clauses, and expanded trade flows, taking into account the sensitivities of agricultural sectors.

On July 4, Deputy Minister of Economy, Trade Representative Taras Kachka stated that due to the new trade conditions within the framework of the revision of the free trade area with the EU, Ukraine will not suffer overall losses.

At the same time, on July 14, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania expressed their dissatisfaction with the new agreement between Ukraine and the EU, which is being prepared on the basis of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), during a meeting of the EU Agriculture Council.