Some EU members are banning Ukrainian goods


Briefly: Hungary has added honey and various meats to a list of Ukrainian products that can’t be imported until at least 30 June. The EU has criticised Hungary’s decision and similar measures from Poland, Slovakia, and Bulgaria.

The seeds of all this tension were planted last year when a Russian blockade in the Black Sea led the EU to cut tariffs on Ukrainian grain, to help Ukraine’s economy. But a flood of cheap Ukrainian wheat has since left EU farmers uncompetitive (and angry).

In March, the EU allocated millions to support farmers along its eastern flank, and on Wednesday, officials suggested topping up with another €100M.

Intrigue’s take: Poland and Slovakia are some of Ukraine’s biggest supporters. But they’ve both got elections this year, and a poke in the EU’s eye can be great politics. As for Hungary, its prime minister is no fan of the EU or Ukraine.

But whatever the motivation, this whole issue risks weakening European unity. And that’s good news for Russia; less so for Ukraine.

Also worth noting:

Latest Author Articles
Can the US actually destroy Iran’s Fordow base?

Now that the US president has indicated he’ll allow another two weeks for negotiations with Iran to continue, we can also reflect a little more on some of the underlying assumptions at play: eg, can the US actually punch through Iran’s Fordow mountain? So with thanks to an anonymous Intriguer, we connected with one of […]

20 June, 2025
Israel strikes Iran

Thought you could have a nice, relaxed, geopolitics-free weekend? Perhaps pop down to Home Depot if you get time? Wrong.  Following a day of mysterious security alerts for US and Israeli diplomats in the Middle East (suggesting they had intel something was up), Israel has now struck targets in Iran. The dust is still settling, […]

13 June, 2025
The Israel-Hamas ceasefire wobbles

It’s been three weeks since Israel and Hamas signed a deal that put a tentative end to their ~16 months of devastating conflict.  The pact ramped up the flow of aid into the strip and enabled the return of an initial 16 Israeli hostages held by Hamas and more than 730 Palestinian prisoners in Israel. […]

14 February, 2025
Did the US just ditch Ukraine?

As world leaders, chief diplomats, and defence leaders alike board their private jets to Munich today, just know that their teams are re-writing every briefing note and messaging strategy in the wake of Washington’s mic drop only hours ago.  Here’s what happened.  Speaking first from Brussels at the UK-chaired Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting, the […]

13 February, 2025