On Thursday, a convoy of hundreds of angry farmers driving large tractors caused chaos outside the European Union headquarters, demanding that EU leaders bail out from rising prices and red tape.
In the Belgian capital, farmers threw firecrackers, eggs and beer bottles at police amid thick smoke from burning hay bales, security forces used water cannons to extinguish the fire, and farmers cut down trees on the steps of the European Parliament. prevented him from doing so.
Thursday’s protest was the culmination of weeks of protests within the bloc. Farmers are finding it harder than ever to earn a decent living as energy and fertilizer costs have soared due to Russia’s war in Ukraine, and agricultural imports have increased and become cheaper, making it harder to compete. It is claimed that there is. Droughts, floods and fires caused by climate change destroy crops.
Farmers are an important electoral group at both EU and national level, and leaders are scrambling to meet their demands ahead of EU parliamentary elections in June. In recent weeks, populist and far-right politicians have seized on the plight of farmers.
The European Union’s executive arm, the European Commission, said on Wednesday it would protect farmers from cheap wartime imports from Ukraine and allow farmers to use some land that had been left fallow for environmental reasons. announced plans to do so. The French government, where the protests have been particularly disruptive, earlier this week showered farmers with promises of support, including emergency cash aid and restrictions on imported food.
The farmers also pushed for it to be on the agenda at Thursday’s EU summit, which was supposed to focus on financing Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s war of aggression. Leaders managed to quickly reach a deal on a new 50 billion euro ($54 billion) aid package for the war-torn country, but Belgian Prime Minister Alexander de Croo said that their demands need to be addressed.
“We also need to make sure they get a fair price for the quality products they provide. We also need to make sure the administrative burden they take on is reasonable.” said De Croo, who currently holds the EU Presidency.
However, it is unclear whether any concrete proposals will be made at the summit of the 27 countries.
Jean-François Ricker, a farmer in southern Belgium, braved the winter night near the EU headquarters.
“There will be a lot of people,” he said amid the sounds of tractor engines and blaring horns in the early morning hours in Brussels.
Similar protests – mostly attended by young farmers supporting their families – have been held across the EU for most of this week. On Wednesday, demonstrators blocked transport arteries in Belgium, France and Italy in an attempt to disrupt trade at major ports and other economic lifelines.
Days of growing discontent were largely peaceful, but French police arrested 91 protesters who broke into Europe’s largest wholesale food market on Wednesday, the Paris police chief announced.
In addition to the EU plan announced earlier this week, leaders are proposing other ways to support farmers.
On Thursday, some officials approved trade deals with South American countries being considered, as long as their imports do not meet the same regulatory standards faced by EU farmers – a key requirement for the sector. He said he would not. And many promised to ease the red tape that often keeps farmers away from their fields and barns.
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said: “Our priority is to implement existing rules and regulations and not impose new additional rules on farmers over the next few years.” A chorus of soothing words followed from the others.
Meanwhile, French farmers maintained traffic blockades on Thursday on eight motorways around Paris and major roads across the country under a heavy police presence.
Police released 79 protesters arrested that day at a wholesale food market in Rungis, south of Paris. Authorities said in a statement that they will continue to investigate, including through footage from the scene, to identify the person who caused the damage.