Since the blockade of the Polish-Ukrainian border crossing by Polish truck drivers in early November, a large number of trucks have been stranded at various border crossings between the two countries. At one point, the convoy at the Dorohusk and Medika crossings was 80 kilometres long, and the transit time increased from a dozen hours at the beginning to about two weeks. Only a few Ukrainian trucks are allowed to pass every hour, hoping to attract the attention of the European Union and Poland.
Cargo trucks stranded on the Polish-Ukrainian border.
Why are the Polish ** people dissatisfied?
At the Korčova-Krakovec border crossing, Polish ** told reporters that one of the reasons for their blockade of the passage was that Ukraine had implemented an electronic queuing system, but Polish drivers did not have this treatment. Polish drivers waiting to cross the border can wait up to two weeks, while Ukrainian drivers can get the exact transit time through a mobile phone notification.
Tomáš Buček, Poland: Why did the transporters start?This is due to the fact that Polish vans on the Ukrainian side have to queue up if they want to return to Poland. This is a privilege given to transporters on the Ukrainian side, who wait to enter the border checkpoint, some even wait at home, and after two or three hours, when the system shows that they can enter, they get in the car and go. And Polish drivers have to stay there for even 14 days at a time, living in cars, and this is how Polish drivers are currently treated in Ukraine.
In addition, the ** believes that the EU's special treatment of Ukrainian transport companies has disrupted the country's transport market and requires the EU to restore the transport permit system. From the problem of grain export from Ukraine to the problem of the transportation market, the people of Central and Eastern European countries believe that their status in the EU is more like that of a second-class country than Ukraine.
Polish ** Tomáš Buček: Ukrainian drivers can stay in the EU for 50 days, they pull goods from Poland and send them abroad, which is practically illegal. ** to show Poland and Europe that as a member of the European Union, Poland is like a second-class country compared to Ukraine.
In order to alleviate the pressure of congestion, the Ukrainian border guard confirmed that new border crossings have been opened, allowing Polish truck drivers to cross the border back to Poland, but the ** believes that this is not a fundamental solution.
Baltos Jasinski, member of the Polish Committee for the Protection of Transport Carriers and Employers: There are also Polish drivers and trucks stranded in Ukraine, a border crossing has been opened for Polish drivers to pass through, and some empty vehicles returned yesterday. Unfortunately, we require that only trucks with EU license plates be returned, and Ukrainian trucks are also in this queue. If Poland** does not unilaterally terminate the agreement with Ukraine, we will escalate**, notify other border crossings, reduce the number of trucks allowed to pass, or even block it altogether.
Poland's Deputy Minister of Infrastructure, Rafael Weber, said before the start of the EU Transport Council meeting that due to the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the EU will begin to relax restrictions on Ukrainian transport enterprises in 2022, and Ukrainian drivers can freely enter and exit the EU without a permit and stay in the EU for 50 days. This has led to the integration of a large number of Ukrainian freight trucks into the EU market, encroaching on the market share of Poland, Slovakia and other countries. Before the Russia-Ukraine conflict, 37% of the traffic between Poland and Ukraine was carried by Polish carriers and 63% by Ukrainian carriers;At present, Poland accounts for only 8%, and 92% is carried by Ukrainian carriers.
Screenshot of Rafael Weber, Deputy Minister of Infrastructure of Poland, on social ** posts.
A large number of Ukrainian drivers are stranded at the border and life is difficult.
There are currently two main roads leading to the Korgiova-Krakovec crossing, one is Highway 94 and the other is the A4 motorway. There is a parking lot near each of these two roads, and a large number of Ukrainian trucks are stuck in the parking lot. In addition, there are many trucks stranded on the road waiting to be cleared, and the queue of trucks on Route 94 stretches for more than 20 kilometers. Many Ukrainian drivers told reporters that some of them have been here for two weeks and are still unable to clear customs.
Ukrainian truck driver Vladimir: We are stranded here, no one cares about us. They leave us to our fate, whether we live or die. Drivers with full loads of goods are waiting here.
Ten. 3. 14 days.
Ukrainian truck driver Valodya: I was delivering supplies for the Ukrainian army, but the Polish ** wouldn't let me through. The border is closed, and if we don't deliver goods, there will be no revenue. We just wanted to go home and nothing else.
Ukrainian truck driver Ivan: Almost all the factories in Ukraine have closed, we transport diesel, gasoline, gas, and the border blockade has caused prices to skyrocket, which is very bad. We stand here in winter, as if we have returned to the Stone Age, which is not human progress, but regression. Let's see how many people are stranded here. It's winter, not summer. People need to take a bath, they need to shave, and we're human too.
The EU's "partiality" causes trouble, and relevant policies are questionable.
From the problem of the export of Ukrainian agricultural products at the beginning of the year to the transit transport problem today, the countries and peoples of Central and Eastern European countries** are taking concrete actions against the EU's Ukraine policy.
On November 24, Slovak Prime Minister Fizo said that Slovakia would not provide Ukraine with **.
Czech Channel 24 reported a screenshot of the press conference between Slovak Prime Minister Fizo (first from left) and Czech Prime Minister Fiala (first from right).
On December 4, Polish Prime Minister Morawiecki said that Poland would ask the European Union to restore the permit system for Ukrainian trucks to enter Poland.
Screenshot of Poland's Business Pulse Economic ** report Polish Prime Minister asking the European Union to restore the permit system for Ukrainian trucks to enter Poland.
On December 6, Hungary's ruling party submitted a draft resolution to parliament opposing the start of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the European Union.
Hungarian news portal **444HU reported that the ruling party in Hungary submitted a draft to parliament to oppose the EU to start negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the European Union.
The EU's support for Ukraine is partly at the expense of the interests of Central and Eastern European countries. It is not difficult to see that since the escalation of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, a large number of Ukrainian products and services have hit the market and employment of Central and Eastern European countries, and the differences and contradictions within the EU on Ukraine-related issues have also increased day by day. The situation of farmers and truck drivers in Central and Eastern European countries fully illustrates the dilemma of the EU in supporting Ukraine, and how to balance the interests of all parties is an urgent issue for EU leaders to solve.
*: CCTV news client.