Hundreds of Romanian farmers and truck drivers on January 15 protested for the sixth consecutive day amid ongoing negotiations with the government over the high cost of diesel and other issues, including some tied to the war in Ukraine.
The protests paralyzed traffic on public roads in 20 counties as convoys of heavy farm machinery and tractor-trailer rigs blocked main routes and important customs checkpoints in the east and northeast of the country.
The protesters are drawing attention to the high cost of diesel, insurance rates, European Union measures to protect the environment, and pressures on the domestic market from imported Ukrainian agricultural goods.
Their demands include a moratorium on loan repayments, faster subsidy payments, and separate lines at border crossings and the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta for trucks registered in EU countries and those from outside the bloc, including Ukraine.
Ukraine has been transporting grain and other agricultural products over land to the port as an alternative export route since Russia withdrew from a UN-Turkey-negotiated grain-export deal.
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Romanian Farmers, Truck Drivers Demand Lower Taxes, Higher Subsidies
Romanian Agriculture Minister Florin Barbu agreed on January 15 with representatives of the largest farm associations to specific deadlines for a series of demands.
More negotiations are scheduled for later this week, but Augustin Hagiu, president of the Romanian Transport Operators’ Federation, told RFE/RL that the organization withdrew from the negotiations.
Trucks and tractors earlier on January 15 took position on roads leading to the checkpoints of Siret and Vicovu de Sus on the border with Ukraine, but Romanian border police said customs formalities were still being completed.
Police stopped the largest gathering of protesting haulers outside Bucharest.
Farmers in Eastern European countries have complained that the lifting of duties on Ukrainian grain and other agricultural products after Russia's invasion disrupted local markets and they have demanded that the duties be reinstated.
The Hungarian Agriculture Ministry said on January 15 that Bulgaria, Poland, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia had sent a letter to the European Commission requesting the EU reimpose import duties on Ukraine grains, citing unfair competition.