Ukraine said Tuesday it had not received any official demands from Polish transport companies, which have blocked three major border crossings to protest what they say is unfair competition from their war-torn neighbour.

After Russia invaded Ukraine, the EU waived a system of permits for Ukrainian transport companies to enter the bloc.

Carrier companies in Poland, an EU member which borders Ukraine, said the liberalisation of the rules triggered an influx of competitors, hitting their revenue.

“As of today, official demands from Polish carriers have not been handed over to any representative of the Ukrainian side,” Ukraine’s ministry for reconstruction said.

The ministry said it understood that Polish carriers wanted to return to a system of separate permits for Ukrainian trucks, but had only gathered this “from information available in the media and social media networks.”

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“In the presence of an official and reasoned position from the Polish partners, we are open to a constructive dialogue,” it added.

Apart from reinstating the EU entry permits, Polish truckers have also criticised lengthy procedures upon returning to Poland from Ukraine.

Ukraine said the protest was damaging to both countries.

Poland has been one of Ukraine’s staunchest backers in the war, providing it with weapons and welcoming refugees.

But several disputes have strained the relationships between the two neighbours in recent months, including a spat around Ukrainian grain exports.

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Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced that Hungary and Ukraine have reached a “comprehensive agreement” to broaden language, cultural, educational and political rights for roughly 100,000 ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine’s Zakarpattia region, following several weeks of expert-level talks. Kyiv has pledged to write the agreed measures into Ukrainian law, reflecting them in the EU accession action plan. Budapest indicated it would support opening the first negotiating cluster for Ukraine.
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