Yanis Darras
modified to
11:37 a.m., February 25, 2024
The Minister of Agriculture Marc Fesneau was the guest of the Grand Rendez-vous Europe 1/ CNews/ Les Echos. At Sonia Mabrouk’s microphone, he returned to aid to Ukraine and the price paid by French farmers. “We all pay the price” of aid to kyiv, he explains, but assures that customs duties are being discussed again with Ukraine.
The visit will have been chaotic. This Saturday, the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron went to the Salon de l’Agriculture to inaugurate the 60th edition of the largest farm in France. But numerous confrontations took place between the police and farmers, determined to get as close as possible to the head of state, while the agricultural crisis is in full swing in France, and more broadly in Europe.
Spirit of solidarity
Among the reasons for farmers’ anger: the opening of the single market to Ukraine. With the Russian invasion, the European Union is trying to support kyiv as much as possible. In addition to weapons and budgetary aid, Brussels opened the borders to Ukrainian agriculture. Cereals, poultry… There is no shortage of products coming from the Eastern European country and are causing serious concern among farmers.
Asked about the subject this Sunday morning, Marc Fesneau wonders about the future. “There is a subject which is solidarity towards the Ukrainians who are at war”, explains the Ministry of Agriculture on the stage of the Grand Rendez-vous Europe 1/ CNews/ The echoes, which highlights the importance of agriculture in the Ukrainian economy.
“It’s not Ukraine’s fault”
“We realized that there was a destabilization of the markets. And therefore, at the European Commission, they have a certain number of proposals which aim to reintroduce customs barriers,” he continues. But Marc Fesneau confesses that farmers are paying part of the price of the war in Ukraine. Before adding: “But everyone pays the price of war. But it’s not Ukraine’s fault in the same way. Wait, where do you think inflation comes from? increase in energy?” he gets annoyed, explicitly accusing Russia.
“If it’s not Russia’s fault, whose fault is it?” adds the Minister of Agriculture. So, “farmers have paid in a certain way for part of the war, notably through the grain market which is disorganized”, since the start of the Russo-Ukrainian conflict, he concludes.