After Polish truck drivers, Slovakian freight forwarders are now also blocking a border crossing with Ukraine. They are demanding that the EU reintroduce transport permits for Ukrainian trucks.
Slovak truck drivers block the country’s most important border crossing with Ukraine. In doing so, they followed the example of Polish long-distance drivers who have been paralyzing border crossings with Ukraine in their country for several weeks. They accuse their Ukrainian competitors of forcing them out of the freight forwarding business within the European Union with lower freight rates.
The blockade of the crossing from Vysne Nemecke in Slovakia to the Ukrainian city of Uzhhorod began at 3 p.m., the Slovak news agency TASR reported, citing several union members. The blockade will be maintained indefinitely, it said.
Only four trucks per hour
Excluded from the Slovakian border blockade include deliveries of perishable food, military and humanitarian goods and animal transport. In addition, four trucks will be allowed through every hour. The police announced that they would try to ensure the safest and smoothest possible operation. Vysne Nemecke is the only crossing between Slovakia and Ukraine that trucks can pass through.
The Slovak truck drivers’ union UNAS is calling on the EU to reintroduce transport permits for Ukrainian truck drivers when entering the European Union. The EU abolished the permits after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Delegations from Poland, Slovakia and Hungary are expected to raise the issue at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday.