Ukraine jointly with EU preparing safeguards against new border blockades– deputy minister

Ukraine and the European Union plan to develop safeguards against blocking the border in the future, Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Serhiy Derkach said on national television on Wednesday.

"Borders should be free, especially during martial law. That is why we are now working with the European Commission to speak and make some safeguards so that borders and roads to checkpoints cannot be blocked," he said, when asked whether blocking checkpoints will become traditional.

From November 6 to January 16, the three largest cargo checkpoints on the border between Ukraine and Poland were blocked by Polish carriers.

At the end of 2023, there were also cases of border blocking by Slovak carriers.

At the beginning of January 2024, following their example, Romanian farmers succeeded in blocking the border, although all their demands relate exclusively to the Romanian government. They have no complaints against Ukraine itself.

Derkach stated that Ukraine is working with each EU country to develop a map of crossing points so that there will be many more of them.

In March 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to transfer 29 checkpoints to the responsibility of the Restoration Agency, which is part of the Ministry of Infrastructure.

Most of them have already been transferred from the State Customs Service, only six are in the process of transfer.

Since November 2023, the regional restoration services have started ongoing repairs at the checkpoints they have taken control of.