Slogans "praising" Russian President Vladimir Putin during recent protests staged by Polish farmers look like an attempt by "pro-Putin agents" to take over the industry, Poland’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Pawel Wronski has claimed.
He was apparently referring to the fact that one of the Polish farmers used a slogan urging the Russian president to "put things in order with Ukraine, Brussels and our [Polish] rulers.
This reflect the "extreme fatigue" of ordinary Poles with the Ukraine aid issue, Mateusz Piskorski, a political observer and columnist for the Mysl Polska (Polish Thought) newspaper, told Sputnik in an interview.
"People are simply tired of what state media and politicians say on the matter, of all these slogans related to [Poland’s] unconditional support for Ukraine," Piskorski said.
He also mentioned "a certain level of deep disappointment" among the farmers, who "are trying to draw attention to this deplorable situation they are facing. The political commentator added that "all those who protest are trying to stress that they are using slogans that run counter to Warsaw’s political line and that of state-run media."
Asked why the Polish government is turning a deaf ear to the farmers' protests, the expert said that Warsaw is in fact, "partially forced to heed the agricultural workers’ demands [to stop agri-food imports from Ukraine]."
On the other hand, the Polish authorities are "unable to make certain decisions because the issues related to the import of agricultural products from Ukraine are resolved at the EU’s level and that of the European Commission," according to Piskorski.
Farmers Say 'No' to Ukrainian Food Imports
He spoke a few days after tractors flying Polish flags blocked highways and major intersections at Poland's border crossings with Ukraine as part of protracted protests in which farmers spilled Ukrainian grain on the road to protest unchecked Ukrainian food imports. Similar protests have taken place in Germany, Italy and France.
Relations between Warsaw and Kiev were strained by the influx of Ukrainian agricultural products into the EU last year, when Poland, along with Slovakia and Hungary, unilaterally extended a ban on duty-free imports of Ukrainian grain after EU-imposed restrictions expire on September 15, 2023.
Ukraine responded by filing a complaint against Warsaw, Bratislava and Budapest with the World Trade Organization, promising to withdraw it if the three provided guarantees that they would not restrict grain exports in the future.