Angry farmers in France and Germany continue their protests today, Friday, demanding measures to enable them to continue their work.
In France, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announces first measures with quick effect in response to the demands of farmers who have been demonstrating for a week, and in light of these decisions they will decide whether or not to continue blocking roads in the north and south of the country.
Facing the first serious crisis since his appointment, Atal will meet farmers today, Friday, to put forward “concrete proposals for simplification measures,” accompanied by Agriculture Minister Mark Visno.
The large farmers' union said he would head to the Haute-Garonne region in the southwest of the country, where the first road-cutting operations began a week ago.
On Friday morning, the main A1 highway, linking Paris to northern Europe, was blocked to cars by tractors and hay bales in two locations, causing great difficulties.
Jeremy Allard, a farmer unionist in northern France, said, “Today we are waiting for answers from the prime minister. If we do not get them, we will continue the movement.”
Farmer Olivier Lellivre warned that “the movement is long-term.”
Yesterday, Thursday, the mobilization included more than 55,000 people, according to a count by the main farmers’ union, which has been trying for a week to direct the movement in an appropriate manner.
Farmers in several regions of France have different demands, whether they are farmers of poultry that were infected with bird flu last year, or manufacturers of foodstuffs whose prices have fallen, or growers of organic types of vegetables that the French avoid, or large producers of grains such as Thierry Casimago, who grows sweet corn and green beans in… Gironde region.
Casimago explained, “Non-road diesel is really a priority and reducing it is essential. We must return to 80 cents, independent of taxes, while today we buy it for 1.20 euros. The matter is urgent and burdens us.”
On the other hand, others are demanding setting a minimum price for their products, receiving long-deserved aid or compensation, or suspending the ban on pesticides, which their union recently called for.
In different parts of the country, yesterday, Thursday, demonstrators targeted symbols of the French state or major stores, which inspired mounting anger.
In Germany, more than 300 farmers from the eastern German state of Brandenburg headed from different directions to the German capital, Berlin, on Friday morning.
The police reported that these farmers used a total of 250 tractors to demonstrate in front of the headquarters of the ruling coalition parties in protest against the planned cuts in agricultural diesel subsidies.
A statement issued today, Friday, quoted Henrik Wendorf, head of the Farmers' Union in the state of Brandenburg, as saying: “The protests in recent weeks have shown that farmers are cohesive, and that the situation has reached a turning point, at which point enough is enough.”
The Farmers' Union in the state of Brandenburg reported that the farmers intend to submit a list of demands to the federal executive offices of the three parties that make up the ruling coalition. Among the demands included in this list is maintaining the reduced tax on agricultural diesel fuel.
In front of the headquarters of the Social Democratic Party, the party's Secretary-General, Kevin Kuhnert, spoke with Hendrik Wendorf and some protesting farmers. Green Party Executive Director Emily Bonning also gave a speech during the farmers' march in front of her party's headquarters.
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