Brussels, Belgium - Competing imports from war-torn Ukraine are a key grievance fueling protests by farmers across Europe, but the country's deputy economy minister hopes to persuade the EU that closing its borders is a "no-go" for both sides.
In an interview with AFP, the minister, Taras Kachka, stressed the need for dialogue, even as Poland's stance hardens against the produce from Ukraine and farmers across the bloc protest to protect their income.
"We believe that Ukraine can be a solution for the problems that are tackled by EU farmers," Kachka said in Brussels, in the interview conducted Tuesday.
"We are in a common situation, and (dialogue) is the best way to resolve this problem by unifying our efforts. Because, after all, Ukraine is like a twin sister of EU agriculture," he said.
Ukraine, once dubbed "Europe's breadbasket", has had its traditional export routes through the Black Sea largely blocked by Russia's two-year-old invasion.
With cooperation from Brussels, it has taken to transiting Ukrainian goods by land through the neighbouring European Union with tariff exemptions.
But farmers in Poland -- the principal entry point -- and elsewhere in the bloc complain the imports are depressing prices. It is one of many causes for protests across Europe.
Polish farmers have been blocking border crossings with Ukraine in protest and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk last week said his government was mulling a "temporary" closure of the border with Ukraine and "the cessation in general of trade" with the country.
Border closure is 'no-go'
Kachka warned a blocked border "will damage Polish economy in the same amount as for Ukraine and even worse," because of Poland's position as a re-exporting hub.
"So that's why it is absolutely a no-go for both states to close the border," he said.
The deputy minister denied EU markets were flooded with Ukrainian cereals, but acknowledged that there was increasing demand in the bloc, particularly in Spain, for Ukrainian wheat.
He expressed hope that an EU coordination platform set up to address the issue raging in Poland would facilitate dialogue.
Kachka pointed out that Ukrainian farmers faced threats of Russian missile strikes and were forced to sell corn and wheat at unfavourable prices for lack of storage facilities.
In comparison, he said the logistical support for Polish farmers meant they had a "privilege" to wait up to two years to sell their stored produce.
EU member states have given assent to extend Ukraine's tariff-free transit access to the bloc for another year, from June.
A European Parliament committee is to decide on Thursday whether to back that.
The European Commission has said it envisions "safeguards" over the extension period to ensure Ukrainian imports do not drive down prices at the expense of Europe's own farmers.
For the most sensitive products -- poultry, eggs and sugar -- an "emergency brake" would be used to stop future imports from rising beyond the average volumes of 2022 and 2023.