They blocked the border with Ukraine for ten days. The Hungarian truckers decided to end their blockade, without having won their case. The government has not given in to their demands. What they denounce: competition that they consider unfair, from Ukrainian truckers.
They blocked the border with Ukraine for ten days. The Hungarian truckers decided to end their blockade, without having won their case. The government has not given in to their demands. What they denounce: competition that they consider unfair, from their Ukrainian colleagues.
“We have heard the speech from our government that it will not leave anyone behind. Today it seems that this is not the case,” explains Károly Szamosfalvi, a Hungarian trucker.
These truck drivers are protesting against a decision by the European Union in favor of Ukraine. To support kyiv after the Russian invasion, the EU renounced the system of entry permits for Ukrainian trucks into Europe.
First signed for one year, this agreement was extended until June 2024.
“Truck drivers from non-EU countries can enter the European market with a significant price advantage. We cannot compete with them,” continues Károly Szamosfalvi.
Hungarian truckers, who wish to continue their movement in 2024, are not the only ones to be angry. Their Polish and Slovak colleagues also feel wronged and have been blocking their respective borders with Ukraine for several weeks.
The movement creates long queues, which particularly disrupt the work of Ukrainian truck drivers.
“A week ago we had to wait three days because the queue was 28 kilometers long. Since then the situation has improved a little, maybe 6 kilometers, and we can cross quickly, in 3 or 5 p.m. It’s not much. There are so many things happening at the different borders that it’s better here,” explains a Ukrainian trucker.
The Ukrainian Minister of Infrastructure announced Thursday that he had met his Polish counterpart to try to find a solution to the blockage.