Even after joining the EU: it is being proposed to limit Ukraine’s access to the agricultural market and subsidies

Ukraine may face significant restrictions on access to the agricultural market and EU agricultural subsidies even after accession. The European Commission proposes to provide for such conditions as part of the European Union enlargement reform. According to ft.com.

The proposals are written about by the Financial Times, citing an internal document of the European Commission. It is still a draft, not adopted rules: according to the publication, senior commission officials are discussing it ahead of the planned approval on Tuesday.

The restrictions are intended to reassure current EU members who fear competition from large volumes of Ukrainian grain and oilseed products. Among these countries:

• Poland;
• France;
• Italy.

The document cites the scale of the Ukrainian agricultural sector, its structure and productivity as grounds for special conditions. The proposed approach could significantly narrow Ukraine‘s financial support and opportunities to access the European market, particularly for wheat and other cereals. The total volume of EU agricultural subsidies amounts to 55 billion euros per year.

At the same time the European Commission proposes to help Ukraine restore its presence in traditional export markets. Deliveries there were disrupted due to Russia‘s full-scale invasion.

The draft enlargement reform also covers other changes:

• Access for new members to EU funds would be linked to implementing reforms.
• The procedure to strip a state of voting rights for breaching European Union rules is proposed to be simplified.

Separate roadmaps for accession without fixed joining dates are proposed for:

• Ukraine;
• Moldova;
• Montenegro;
• Albania.

The European Union is already developing a special roadmap for Ukraine. It should set out the necessary reforms and approximate timelines for completing key stages of membership negotiations. Similar plans are being prepared for the other named countries.

Earlier we wrote:

• No money in advance: EU requires reforms to finance Ukraine
• EU accession scheduled by reforms and timelines: plan prepared for Ukraine and three other countries
• The EU announced the final conditions for Ukraine’s accession under three clusters
• Ukraine offers Poland a plan to unblock the border — otherwise there will be mirror measures
• Poland has prepared transit corridors for Ukrainian grain, – Duda