BRUSSELS, August 12 (RIA Novosti) - Polish Agriculture Minister Marek Sawicki is expected to demand on Tuesday compensation for the country’s farmers, affected by Russia’s ban on food imports from Europe at a meeting with European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Dacian Ciolos.
The meeting comes as Poland has been for the second time this month targeted for food embargo, following Russia’s August 1 decision to ban all pork deliveries from this Central European country after two cases of African swine fever were registered in Poland and Lithuania.
The second ban affects predominantly Polish deliveries of fruits and vegetables. Warsaw was earmarked for the restrictions as one of the most vocal supporters of EU sanctions against Moscow after its re-unification with Ukraine’s former republic of Crimea.
Poland estimates that the total load of Russia’s food-related embargos could carry a one-billion-dollar loss, while the European Union reserves only some $535.6 million a year for agricultural crises.
On Thursday, Russia introduced a one-year ban on agricultural and food product imports from the countries that have imposed sanctions on Moscow over the Ukrainian crisis, namely the European Union, the United States, Australia, Canada, and Norway.
The list includes meat, poultry, fish, seafood, milk, dairy products, as well as fruit and vegetables. The embargo may cost the European Union a whopping $16 billion in export losses.
Moscow said it was ready to review the terms of its import ban if its Western partners showed a commitment to dialogue.
