He said this on Espreso TV.
“The decision to ban imports of Ukrainian grain should have been made by the European Commission, but it is beyond their competence. This is a violation of the Association Agreement. Why was it signed at all when all governments violated it at the first critical moment? Now the European Commission is considering subsidies to farmers in countries that suffer from an excess of Ukrainian grain. But these subsidies will not calm them down, because this is a political story, not an economic one. This story with grain is being used to undermine the position of the ruling party and to strengthen the position of pro-Russian forces,” Portnikov emphasized.
According to the journalist, Jarosław Kaczyński took Putin's bait.
“And you can't be afraid in such a situation, especially when it's an experienced politician with revolutionary experience. He may simply be driven to the point of going to Moscow to negotiate, like Orbán. But Kaczyński (Polish politician, co-founder and chairman of the Law and Justice party - ed.) is not the kind of person who will go anywhere. And pro-Russian forces are gaining good ground in Polish society. The struggle between Jarosław Kaczyński and Donald Tusk (Polish politician, co-founder and chairman of the Civic Platform party - ed.) is counterproductive in this situation. What matters is that pro-European forces should unite in this situation,” Portnikov emphasized.
On April 7, it became known that Ukraine had agreed to stop exporting grain to Poland.
On April 15, Warsaw approved a ban on the import of Ukrainian grain and other food products to Poland, including transit.