Polish hauliers have been blocking key freight vehicle border crossings with neighboring war-torn Ukraine since early November, demanding the return of entry permits to their Ukrainian competitors.
“Traffic blocking on the Polish-Ukrainian border: the situation is catastrophic!” – Kyiv human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinec emphasized in a statement.
“The situation of Ukrainian drivers is so bad that they plan to go on hunger strike if the situation does not improve!”
Huge lines of trucks have formed on both sides of the border, where many drivers have to spend more than one day in freezing temperatures and with little food supplies.
Kyiv reported on Friday that about 2,100 trucks trying to enter Ukraine were blocked on the Polish side.
D. Lubinec said that he has contacted his Polish counterpart Marcin Wiacek, but has not yet received an answer.
He also said Kyiv had begun preparing for “the evacuation of drivers from blocked checkpoints on Polish territory,” but did not give details of what that would look like.
He said Ukraine has also started preparing to provide drivers with food, water, medicine and fuel.
At least two rounds of negotiations between Kyiv and the carriers have been unsuccessful.
Poland’s government said on Wednesday it would step up inspections of Ukrainian trucks on roads leading to the border to appease protesting Polish hauliers.
Polish carriers have been blocking key border crossings with neighboring Ukraine for more than three weeks because they say they face unfair competition from Ukrainian drivers.
Polish transport companies want Ukrainian trucks to be allowed back into the country only with EU permits, which the bloc abandoned after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Since the beginning of the war with Russia, Poland has taken in more than a million Ukrainian refugees.
But relations with Ukraine soured during Poland’s parliamentary elections this fall, when the ruling party stepped up nationalist rhetoric and became embroiled in disputes with Kyiv.
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2024-08-24 13:56:12
