Hungary reinstates ban on food imports from Ukraine.

This ban was originally imposed in 2023 under former Prime Minister Viktor Orban, after Hungary declared a state of emergency due to the economic impact of the Ukraine conflict.

At the time, Hungary argued that the European Union's (EU) lifting of tariffs had allowed cheap agricultural products from Ukraine to flood border markets, destabilizing the domestic agricultural sector.

During the period in which the ban was in effect, Hungary allowed goods in transit but prohibited direct import into the domestic market. The ban remained in place even after the EU replaced the temporary duty-free mechanism with a new trade agreement last year.

The new government and "legislative errors"

Following the recent elections, Prime Minister Peter Magyar's Tisza party defeated Orban's Fidesz party and declared an end to the state of emergency.

This means that trade measures linked to the state of emergency, including the ban on imports of Ukrainian agricultural products, automatically expire.

Shortly afterwards, several shipments of grain crossed the border into Hungary, prompting the country's farmers' association to pressure the government to reinstate the ban.

Speaking on social media platform X, Mr. Magyar confirmed: "Hungary has banned the import of agricultural products from Ukraine." The government spokesperson said the ban was lifted "due to a legislative error" during a review of nearly 1,000 decrees from the previous administration.

Agriculture Minister Szabolcs Bona called this a "serious trap for Hungarian farmers" and affirmed that the government would not allow imported products to "threaten farmers' livelihoods".

Reactions from the EU and neighboring countries

Along with Hungary, Poland and Slovakia also maintain their bans on imports of Ukrainian agricultural products, despite objections from Brussels. The European Commission considers these bans illegal because trade policy falls under the jurisdiction of the EU, and has considered legal action but has not yet taken it.

Karin Karlsbro, the European Parliament's rapporteur on EU-Ukraine trade, expressed her "deep regret" over Hungary's decision.

Ukraine has not commented, but President Vladimir Zelensky has repeatedly criticized these sanctions.

Despite campaigning with a commitment to closer ties with the EU, Magyar demonstrated a continuation of some of Orban's policies. He opposed accelerating Ukraine's EU accession process and keeping Hungary outside the bloc's latest financial aid package for Ukraine.

However, he also affirmed that he would not block the new EU aid package and adopted a more conciliatory approach on social issues, appointing Judit Lannert – dubbed by the media as “the first LGBT activist” – as Minister of Education.

According to RT

Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/hungary-khoi-phuc-lenh-cam-nhap-khau-thuc-pham-tu-ukraine-post778917.html