Polish Hungarian Frenemies Strike Ukraine on Grain Exports

Hungary announces withdrawal from the Russian-controlled IIB after the US imposed sanctions on its officials and as more sanctions could target top Hungarian political figures. The EU slams Hungary, Poland and Slovakia for their unilateral bans on Ukrainian grain imports.

On Visegrad Insight this week:

• Jan Farfal analyses how Bosnia and Herzegovina defy expectations in maintaining peace in the fractured nation.
• Matej Kandrik argues why Crimea should be Ukraine’s next target for liberation.
• Adrian Mihaltianu looks into the role of cities in the EU’s democratic reinvention.

EU/REGIONAL

• EU rejects the bans on Ukrainian grain imports introduced by Poland and Hungary over the weekend, saying unilateral moves affecting trade cannot be tolerated. “In such challenging times, it is crucial to coordinate and align all decisions within the EU,” European Commission’s statement reads. Hungary and Poland have been sitting on opposite sides of the spectrum of reactions to Russia’s war on Ukraine but remain aligned on their internal challenge to EU institutions.
• The EU Council adopted an assistance measure worth 1 billion euros under the European Peace Facility (EPF) to support the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The move implements the first part of the Council agreement from 20 March and involves reimbursement of member states for ammunition donated to Ukraine between 9 February and 31 May 2023.
• Plenary session in the European Parliament to begin on 17 April will include debates on deforestation regulation, revision of the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), and Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) as well as the Social Climate Fund (SCF). The votes on ETS, CBAM and SCF represent the finalising steps of these Green Transition pillars.
• Informal meeting of EU environment ministers will take place on 18-19 April in Stockholm. The agenda includes breakout sessions during which conditions, incentives and collaboration to overcome bottlenecks to the green transition will be discussed.
• Charles Michel is to deliver a speech at the Conference for the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Belfast on 19 April.
• AI Act: European Parliament headed for a key committee vote at the end of April.
• China’s flagship Belt and Road initiative of providing loans to poorer countries, including in Eastern Europe, for their infrastructure investments is backfiring. The initiative aimed to help Chinese exports and influence, but the projects progressed slowly, while too high servicing costs have burdened some countries. According to the FT, bad loans China has on its books amount to $78bn.

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UKRAINE