Ukraine says it regrets that Poland did not attend the border meeting

The meeting, which Warsaw had not agreed to attend, was attempted after Kyiv warned that the farmers’ protests were threatening Ukrainian exports and blocking the supply of vital weapons for the war with Russia.

“Unfortunately, Polish government officials did not come, but we publicly appealed to them, presented our proposals and will continue this work,” said Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhalis.

He said that Ukraine is in contact with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and reiterated that this crisis needs to be resolved as soon as possible.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy proposed a meeting earlier this week, but failed to get the go-ahead from Warsaw, which is trying not to anger Polish farmers.

Tusk instead offered to chair intergovernmental talks in Warsaw next month, and told reporters on Thursday that talks were continuing.

“On March 28, a meeting between the two governments will take place in Warsaw,” D. Tusk noted, adding that “it is better to continue these negotiations on a technical, organizational level.”

Farmers outraged by what they see as cheap Ukrainian grain imports began blocking three border crossings this month.

The new protests are another blow to Ukraine-Poland relations, which come just weeks after a similar blockade by Polish truck drivers that lasted two months was put down.