Poland promises farmers changes in EU’s Green Deal

By Jo Harper

WARSAW (AA) – Poland on Saturday promised changes in the EU’s Green Deal after a government meeting with protesting farmers ended in a stalemate.

“On March 15, we will be able to say what changes will be made to the Green Deal. There is a high probability of abandoning the most harmful regulations,” Deputy Agriculture Minister Michal Kolodziejczak told reporters in Warsaw.

On Wednesday, protesting farmers threw stones at police and pushed through barriers around parliament, injuring several officers, as the month-long protests continued.

Farmers – demanding a withdrawal from the EU’s Green Deal and curbs on Ukrainian grain imports – also blocked highways into the capital, and supporters gathered in front of the prime minister’s office before marching on parliament.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said the farmers’ demands are justified and that he plans to propose amendments to the EU’s Green Deal.

“The most controversial thing is leaving soil fallow, and we have a lot of indications that it will be abandoned,” Kolodziejczak added on Saturday. “Withdrawing these regulations is not that easy, and one prime minister or one government will not be enough to accomplish this,” he added.

“We are also talking about 4.5 million tons of grain being removed from the market. This is needed to enter the new season with a clean slate. There will be funds for this. We are the first government to propose such a solution. This will be a very difficult conversation, we have certain financial frameworks that we must stick to,” said Kolodziejczak.

“There are great efforts by the Polish group in the European Commission to depart from these regulations,” he said, adding that the next meeting of farmers with the government will be on Monday.​​​​​​​