The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the European Commission’s decision not to extend the ban on the import of Ukrainian grain and called it an example of true unity and trust.

As Poland, Slovakia and Hungary immediately announced they would impose bans unilaterally, Zelensky assured that if countries bordering Ukraine violate European law, Kiev “will respond civilly”.

“It is now important that European unity also works on a bilateral level. So that the neighbors support Ukraine in this war,” he said in a post on the Telegram app after talks with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

A little earlier, Hungary announced that it would not only extend the embargo, but also extend it to other products besides grain. “Hungary will close its borders to 24 (up from 4 so far) Ukrainian products to protect the interests of its farmers,” Agriculture Minister Istvan Nagy wrote on Facebook.

At the end of April, Brussels reached an agreement with five countries, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Romania, allowing them to ban the import of four Ukrainian products, provided they do not block their transit to other countries .

In the morning, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who maintains strained relations with Kiev, claimed his country had been “deceived”. “After all, we take the grain from Ukraine but it does not reach Africa (…) The poor children of Africa cannot get a single kilo of bread. It’s a scam!” he said in a radio interview while Foreign Minister Peter Szijardo denounced a “propaganda of lies from Brussels and Kiev”

The decision to unilaterally extend the embargo was also taken by Poland and Slovakia. “We do not agree with the Commission’s decision and in the interest of Polish farmers and consumers we are taking national measures,” Polish government spokesman Piotr Miller told the PAP news agency.

Slovakia will also continue to ban imports of Ukrainian products after midnight tonight, local TV channel Markiza reported, citing Agriculture Minister Jozef Bires.