by Riccardo Cacelli
London – In recent days we have witnessed some steps backwards on support for Ukraine by some countries belonging to the European Union and NATO.
I believe that Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy, is realizing that military aid and, probably, political and economic support will soon end.
And this morning’s Ukrainian decision is proof of this.
Kiev has decided to “pause” its complaint to the World Trade Organization (WTO) against Poland, Slovakia and Hungary over restrictions on wheat imports from Ukraine, in an attempt to find a practical compromise to the issue.
Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade Representative of Ukraine, Taras Kachka, announced this this morning in Brussels: “This is generally a question of the functioning of trade between the EU and Ukraine. We expect the issue of importing Ukrainian agricultural products to be resolved in the coming weeks and months. There will be lots of news about how the licensing system will change and so on. It will be a very active job. Until we find a practical solution, our discussions in the WTO will remain on hold.”
Deputy Minister Taras Kachka emphasized that Ukraine is currently engaged in consultations and not in disputes: “We are not in a dispute, we have not formed a working group to resolve the dispute, we are in the process of consultation. We have sent this case to the WTO and we have sixty days for consultations,” he explained.
He stressed that it is important for the Ukrainian side “to find a constructive solution for the EU as a whole.” “Although our complaints refer to specific member states, this is a systemic issue in our relations with the EU. Our aim is to underline that the EU and Ukraine share the same approach to trade agreements.“
He also noted that Kiev has already regulated the customs clearance of goods passing through five neighboring countries. “We see that no country prohibits this transit. This is a great joint achievement. We have a critical point: when the markets of neighboring countries can be opened to Ukrainian goods. This is a marginal problem, because we don’t sell many cereal products there, but in general it is a question of the functioning of trade between Ukraine and the EU,” he explained.
On the situation with Poland, Kachka expressed hope that the issue could be discussed again after the Polish elections.
On the military aid front, the Italian situation is quite delicate.
While the Foreign Minister, Tajani, announces the eighth military aid package, but the Defense Minister, Crosetto, asks for caution: “Let’s check what we are able to give, the resources are not unlimited“.
Italy is not able to continue giving military support to Ukraine.
Stocks of ammunition and various weapons are running out.
In this situation, in recent months Italy has tried to appeal to the USA to guarantee the restoration of the ammunition, but the United States responded that “we should queue”.
This queue is long.
Because the difficulties are common to (almost) all EU countries.
Not to mention the heated political debate present today in the USA on support for Ukraine.
And Ukraine is slowly realizing this.
Bombs fall, and there are dozens of deaths every day.
Isn’t it time to end it all?
Riccardo Cacelli
r.cacelli@cacelli.com
