The European Union have renewed economic
sanctions against Russia for a further six months much to Moscow’s consternation and
scuppering any relaxation in Russia’s embargo on food imports from western
countries.Following on from news that Russia and China have agreed delivery protocols for Russian grain came a quote from Russia’s food safety watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor that Russia could send China up to 1mmt of grain next year.
Ukraine’s minister of agriculture reported that although the Russian trade embargos due to come into force next week will account for 46% of Ukraine’s agricultural exports to Russia, it is only 1% of Ukraine’s total agricultural exports.
Ukraine’s parliament failed to adopt tax
amendments which will likely result in the IMF freezing $40bn funding package.
The politics behind this is complicated but
one comment that stood out was from a group of lawmakers allied with President Poroshenko,
who want a new tax code that favours the agriculture sector to help agriculture
replace the struggling steel industry as Ukraine’s main engine of growth.
Ukraine’s State Forestry Agency have strengthened
the protection of forests during Christmas tree campaign (their words) by increasing
the fine for illegally chopping a tree down up to $204 per tree.
Which reminds me of the story my old taxi
driver told me when he and his mate went to the Carpathian Mountains (pictured) to “collect” Christmas trees. His mate went to off
to deliver a load of trees while he stayed behind to protect the ones they had
already cut.
He said it seemed like a good idea until it
went dark and he realised he was alone, in the dark, with no torch or weapon
and bears lived in the woods. Longest
night of his life apparently.
Happy Christmas