On Tuesday, the Polish government signed an agreement with national carriers to suspend the blockade of three border crossings with Ukraine until March 1, so the truckers began unblocking the checkpoints.
The Dorohusk border crossing accepts about 500 trucks instead of 680, the Rava-Ruska crossing takes 150 trucks instead of 300, and the Krakovets crossing takes about 200 trucks instead of 500, which is insufficient, Balin added.
Polish truckers started blocking automobile checkpoints on the border with Ukraine in early November to protest what they said was the Polish government's inaction over their loss of business to foreign competitors. Their discontent is linked to the fact that Ukrainian truckers have been exempt from obtaining permits to cross the Polish border since February 2022, which has made their services cheaper and more attractive to customers. The protesters are demanding the reintroduction of restrictions on Ukrainian truckers entering Poland and a ban on Poland-based transport companies with capital from outside the European Union.
Polish-Ukrainian relations deteriorated significantly last year due to the influx of Ukrainian grain into the EU. Poland, alongside Slovakia and Hungary, unilaterally extended a ban on duty-free Ukrainian grain imports after EU-imposed curbs lapsed on September 15. In response, Ukraine responded by filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization. In response, the three countries promised to boycott meetings of the coordination platform on Ukrainian grain.