EU proposes a simplified export plan for Ukrainian goods

The European Union is proposing to create “solidarity lanes” solely for the export of agricultural items from Ukraine.

This would help in ease of the blockade that is “threatening world food security,” the commission stated on Thursday.

According to EU Commissioner for Transport Adina Vălean, the proposal intends to connect Ukrainian and EU infrastructure to mobilize 20 million metric tons of grain that must leave Ukraine within three months.

The commission is pushing freight and infrastructure administrators to take actions to make Ukrainian exports more efficient.

It will happen by increasing vehicle availability and prioritizing time slots.

National authorities are also being urged to use “maximum flexibility” in order to “accelerate operations at border crossing points” and secure extra capacity for temporarily warehousing Ukrainian exports.

Thousands of trucks and wagons are blocked on the Ukrainian side of several EU borders, the commission said, with an average wait period of 16 days, up to 30 days at some points.

A global supply crisis of grains such as wheat and corn is being caused by an export ban stemming from the war with Russia, as well as incidences of grain theft allegedly committed by Russian forces.