After more than two years, Russia agreed to lift the ban on Polish meat imports. Russian Agriculture Minister Alexei Gordeyev confirmed the news in mid-December, hailing the end of a row that at times had jeopardized EU-Russian relations.
Gordeyev held a news conference after meeting with Polish officials, at which he told journalists, "We have agreed that a memorandum will be signed ... between veterinarians of the two countries. Immediately upon the signing of the memorandum, practically all restrictions will be lifted."
However, an all-out ban remains on poultry following outbreaks of avian influenza in Poland, although Gordeyev said the two countries were discussing the possibility of restricting the ban to the affected regions.
Russia placed an embargo on Polish meat in November 2005. The country claimed the meat was low quality but Poland believed the move was politically motivated and, in response, derailed EU-Russian talks on a partnership agreement covering areas such as human rights, trade and energy.
The election of Prime Minister Donald Tusk and ruling party Civic Platform (PO) seems to have eased tensions between Warsaw and Moscow. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in early December that the two sides were "on the right track" towards resolving their differences.
However, according to a Reuters source familiar with negotiations between the EU, Russia and Poland, the lifting of the meat embargo will be symbolic until the ban on other products, including vegetables, is also lifted.
But the source said an end to all embargoes may be announced at an agricultural fair in Germany in January, which Polish and Russian officials will be attending. (Reuters)
