Slovak carriers have not yet blocked the border with Ukraine – SBSU
Slovak carriers have not yet blocked the border with Ukraine but have announced that they will start a strike today at 15:00 European time. Currently, there are about 600 trucks in line at the checkpoint with Slovakia.
This was reported by RBC-Ukraine with reference to the spokesperson for the State Border Service of Ukraine, Andrii Demchenko, on the air of the telethon.
"The situation on the border with Poland… It has already added to the lines both on the Slovak border and on the border with Hungary. Until November 6, in the direction of these borders, we did not record lines of trucks waiting for the possibility of crossing the border towards Ukraine. Again, this is due to the increase in the number of vehicles arriving at the border," said Demchenko.
According to him, both drivers and carriers chose alternative routes because they could not cross the border with Poland.
The spokesperson said that as of this morning, there are about 600 trucks in lines in the direction of the Uzhhorod-Vysne Nemecke checkpoint (the border with Slovakia).
And on the border with Hungary, opposite the Tisza checkpoint, there are up to a thousand freight vehicles waiting for the opportunity to cross the border.
"And since yesterday, we have received information from our Slovak colleagues that today at 3:00 p.m. European time, traffic will be blocked for trucks precisely in the direction of the Vysne Nemecke checkpoint (from our direction, the Uzhhorod checkpoint). And they will these actions are the representatives of the Union of Transporters of Slovakia," Demchenko added.
He recalled that something similar had already happened on November 21. At the time, the Slovakian transporters' union did not take such responsibility, saying that they did not block the border.
"But, actually, on November 21, we had a blocked border for half a day, when trucks practically did not move for exit and entry," the spokesperson added.
Then, on the night of November 21 to 22, Slovak border guards reported that traffic had been unblocked, and since then, the situation on the border with Slovakia has been stable.
"Today at 4:00 p.m. outside Kyiv, we will see what the situation will be on the border with Slovakia further. Although the participants of this action noted that they would allow about four trucks per hour to leave Slovakia," said Demchenko.
He also added that there is one such checkpoint in Ukraine on the border with Slovakia, and if it is blocked, traffic with the neighboring country will stop.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, according to the Federation of Employers of Ukraine, on November 22, the economy of Ukraine recorded losses of more than EUR 400 million due to the blocking of the borders by Polish strikers.
On November 23, it became known that another Ukrainian driver died in Poland at a parking lot near the Korczowa-Krakovets border crossing. This is the second fatality since the start of the strike by Polish carriers.
Polish strikers blocking the border with Ukraine have promised not to expand the protest to other border crossing points with Ukraine but refuse to stop the protest. They called for increased control over trucks due to a significant number of violations among Ukrainian carriers.
Meanwhile, the Union of Motor Carriers of Slovakia (UNAS) announced the beginning of blocking the Vysne Nemecke checkpoint on the border with Ukraine from December 1.