Farmers descended on Brussels to pressure a summit of European Union leaders to do more to help them with taxes, rising costs and cheap imports, throwing eggs at the European Parliament, setting fires near buildings and setting off fireworks.
The main roads in Brussels, the heart of the European Union, were blocked by around 1,000 tractors, according to a police estimate.
A tractor displayed a banner that said “If you love the land, support those who manage it”, as farmers from Belgium and other European countries tried to make themselves heard by EU leaders who were meeting later.
Another banner read: “No farmers, no food.”
Police stood guard behind the barriers where the leaders would meet, a few blocks from the European Parliament building, where tractors were parked in a central square.
“If you see how many people are here today, and if you see that it is all over Europe, then you must have hope. We must hope that these people see that agriculture is necessary. It’s the food,” said Kevin Bertens, a farmer outside Brussels.
Farmers say they don't get paid enough, are stifled by taxes and green rules, and face unfair competition from abroad.
They have already secured several measures, including proposals from the bloc's executive commission to limit agricultural imports from Ukraine and relax some environmental regulations on fallow land.
In France, where farmers have been protesting for weeks, the government abandoned plans to gradually reduce agricultural diesel subsidies and promised more aid.
But farmers say this is not enough and protests have spread to countries including Belgium, Italy, Spain and Portugal.
Trade agreement negotiations with Mercosur
The protests across Europe come ahead of European Parliament elections in June, in which the far right, for whom farmers represent a growing electorate, is expected to make gains.
Although the farmers' crisis is not officially on the EU summit agenda, it is inevitable that it will be discussed, at least on the sidelines.
With all eyes on Viktor Orbán, while the other 26 EU leaders want to convince him at the summit to join a plan to offer stable financing to Ukraine, the Hungarian prime minister made a point of meeting with farmers during the night.
“We need to find new leaders who truly represent the interests of the people,” said his spokesman, referring to the European Parliament elections.
“The @EU_Commission should represent the interests of European farmers against those of Ukraine, not the other way around,” he said, quoting Orbán.
Arriving at the summit, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said farmers' complaints should be discussed.
“They offer high quality products, we also need to make sure they get the right price for the high quality products they provide,” he said.
Meanwhile, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar repeated French President Emmanuel Macron's opposition to signing a trade deal with the Mercosur group of South American countries in its current form – another key demand for farmers.
In France, where farmers intensified protests earlier in the week, the impact of dozens of lockdowns is beginning to be felt, said Eric Hemar, head of a federation of transport and logistics employers.
“We carried out a survey among the members of our federation: all transport companies are impacted (by the farmers' protest) and have lost around 30% of their revenue in the last 10 days, because we were unable to deliver on time or with delays,”, he told broadcaster Franceinfo.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
