EU Caps Tax-Free Steel Imports at 18.3 Million Tonnes a Year; Ukrainian Steel Boss Says Measures Aimed at China Are Hitting Ukraine and Seeks a Carve-Out
The boss of one of Ukraine's biggest steel companies has called on the European Union to drop import restrictions on products made in the country, arguing it has been "bundled together" in measures aimed at curbing cheap imports from the likes of China, the BBC reported.
Yuriy Ryzhenkov, chief executive of Metinvest, told the BBC the recently-imposed tariffs on imported steel to the EU were "unfair" and had been put in place "without any consideration for the situation Ukraine is in". He said he wished to see "at least a carve out" for Ukraine to access the EU market.
The trading bloc has recently imposed restrictions on steel imports in an effort to protect steel manufacturers of member nations. It has capped the amount of steel which can enter the EU tax free at 18.3 million tonnes per year – a 47% reduction from 2024 levels. There are some country-specific quotas in the policy, but the overall aim is to cut the amount of steel that can be imported due to member nations struggling to compete with cheap imports from the likes of China and Turkey. Despite a free-trade agreement (FTA) being in place between the EU and Ukraine, the FTA does not stop the EU from introducing separate trade protection measures.
"Ukraine has been bundled together into those measures without any consideration for the situation Ukraine is in," Ryzhenkov said, pointing to the war with Russia. "Access to the European market is crucial for survival," he added. "The restrictive measures that have been put in place by the authorities in the European Union, they don't help. I think it's unfair that Ukraine has been treated in the same way as all of the other importers into the European Union."
A spokesperson for the European Commission said the EU "took into account the difficult situation" of Ukraine when deciding its steel policy. The Ukraine steel industry estimates steel exports to the EU could ultimately fall by about 50–60%. (GSM, via BBC)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：乌克兰一座钢铁厂。欧盟新近实施的钢进口限制把乌克兰也包括在内，乌克兰钢企呼吁为其设豁免。（供稿图）
