Impact of border blockade with Poland on the battlefield in Ukraine

According to the AP news agency, Ukrainian charities and companies supplying supplies to the country's military warn that problems are growing as Polish truck drivers show no signs of ending the month-long border blockade.

Earlier in November, Polish truck drivers began day-and-night protests and blockades at the border between Ukraine and Poland, with a line of trucks stuck 30 kilometers (19 miles) along the border between the two countries, in protest against the EU's decision to ease the bloc's regulations on Ukrainian transport companies in 2022. Polish protesters say their livelihoods are at risk. Similar moves are taking place in other countries such as Slovakia, Bulgaria and Romania. Some Slovak truck drivers have staged protests in recent days at the Ukrainian border.

Although Poland and other neighboring countries have been among Ukraine’s most vocal supporters in its conflict with Russia, truckers and farmers are losing business as cheap Ukrainian goods and services increasingly flow into the world’s largest trading bloc. Protesters insist they are not blocking military or humanitarian aid from entering Ukraine.

But Ukrainian charities warn that the impact of the trade conflict is now spilling over onto the battlefield.

Oleksandr Zadorozhnyi, CEO of KOLO, which helps the Ukrainian military with battlefield technology, including drones and communications equipment, said parts for drones have been stuck at the border for two to three weeks. “This means that the Russian military will be able to kill Ukrainian soldiers in a few weeks,” he said.

Ivan Poberzhniak, head of procurement and logistics at Come Back Alive, Ukraine’s largest charity supplying the military, said about 200 pickup trucks needed to transport ammunition and evacuate the wounded from the front line had been blocked at the border.

According to Mr. Poberzhniak, when drivers showed documents to Polish truck drivers saying that the vehicles were for the Ukrainian army, it had no significant impact on the protesters. “We must understand that in wartime, daily supplies are needed from all directions,” Mr. Poberzhniak shared.

Come Back Alive also said a shipment of 3,000 tourniquets was stuck at the border. Poberzhniak pointed out that stocks of drone parts were also running low.

Although the organization is looking for alternative supply routes, there are few options amid the growing demand for military equipment.

While there is no quick solution in sight, the change in leadership in Warsaw is offering hope of breaking the recent border deadlock.

The new government is expected to be formed next week and will almost certainly be led by pro-EU centrist Donald Tusk, who has criticised the outgoing government for “inaction”, offering hope to businesses hurt by the lockdown as well as protesters.

“We will seek solutions that satisfy Polish transporters, but we will not tolerate any events that threaten Polish security,” Tusk said on December 6, stressing that Ukraine is a strategic point for Poland in its confrontation with Russia.

As temperatures begin to drop, drivers waiting weeks at the border for customs clearance face difficult conditions, especially as they do not turn on their truck heaters to save fuel and face limited access to food and personal hygiene, Ukrainian media reported.

Ukrainian officials say the Polish truckers' protest has added to the strain on their economy and serves only Russia's interests.

Danylo Hetmantsev, head of the finance and tax committee in the Ukrainian parliament, said Ukraine's exports had fallen by 40% as four border crossings with Poland were blocked and the state budget had lost about 9.3 billion hryvnia ($254 million).

“There is no doubt that this is a heavy blow to our economy and exports,” Mr Hetmantsev told state television.