Renew Europe strongly supported the European Commission's new proposal to increase customs duties on Russian and Belarusian agricultural products and fertilisers, a critical step toward reducing Europe's economic dependencies on Russia.
The proposal introduces a 15% customs duty increase on previously unsanctioned Russian agricultural imports and a 50% tariff on approximately 100 products by removing Russia's "most favoured nation" status. Additionally, it establishes a gradual increase in duties on fertilsers, which will take effect over the next three years for the European market to adapt without disruptions.
"Today, we take further steps to target the Russian war economy. Russia refuses to engage in ceasefire negotiations with Ukraine. Russia doesn’t want peace; on the contrary, it has deliberately weaponised our dependencies. Not anymore. As Europe moves decisively away from Russian fossil fuels, time has come to do the same with fertilisers, which are only gas imports in another form. This is also a matter of both European food and economic security. We are ready to work with the European Commission and Member States to jumpstart our own EU fertilisers industry, which was, for too long, undermined by artificially cheap Russian imports," said Ľubica Karvašová MEP (Progresívne Slovensko, SK), Renew Europe shadow rapporteur on this file.
The regulation includes an emergency mechanism allowing for the suspension of tariffs on fertilisers from countries other than Russia and Belarus if a significant price surge occurs.
Currently, the EU remains approximately 13% dependent on Russian fertilisers. Eight member states have already eliminated entirely Russian fertiliser imports.
"This isn't just about sanctions – it's about European security and self-reliance (...) Every euro spent on Russian fertilisers indirectly funds Russian's aggression against Ukraine. While we must reduce our dependence on Russia, we cannot do so at the expense of our farmers, and we will closely monitor the implementation of these safeguards to ensure our agricultural sector remains competitive and resilient." emphasized Marie Pierre Vedrenne MEP (MoDem, FR), Renew Europe Coordinator on the European Parliament International Trade Committee (INTA).