Marine Le Pen explained the risks to French farmers if Ukraine joins the EU

Marine Le Pen, leader of the “National Rally” faction in the French National Assembly, stated that Ukraine’s accession to the European Union could intensify competition for French farmers. According to her, French agriculture could also receive a smaller share of funds from the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy.

“If Ukraine joins the European Union, we will be the first to lose out, for two reasons. Not only will we face intense unfair competition, but the share of the Common Agricultural Policy budget allocated to French agriculture will be significantly reduced,” Le Pen asserted.

During a conversation with farmers at an agricultural fair in Clermont-Ferrand, Marine Le Pen expressed doubt about whether it would be possible to ensure uniform production standards following Ukraine’s potential accession to the EU.

The French politician also drew attention to the scale of Ukrainian farms, which, she said, differ from those in France.

Le Pen linked Ukraine’s potential EU membership directly to two issues—competition in the agricultural market and the distribution of Common Agricultural Policy funds.

“We stand to lose both in terms of competitiveness alongside such a large agricultural country as Ukraine and in the distribution of Common Agricultural Policy funds. After all, this budgetary ‘pie’ is already shrinking even with the current number of countries (in the EU—ed.),” Le Pen said.

Thus, Marine Le Pen links Ukraine’s potential accession to the EU with increased competition for the French agricultural sector and changes in the distribution of Common Agricultural Policy funding.

Marine Le Pen wrote about this on the social media platform X.

Ukraine’s accession to the European Union could enhance the bloc’s food self-sufficiency and strengthen its position on the world stage. At the same time, the integration of the Ukrainian agricultural sector will require the harmonization of production standards and a lengthy transition period.

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