The effect of the war in Ukraine is talked about daily, but the behavior of individual countries is no less interesting. Undoubtedly, in terms of grain, Romania is one of the most affected countries, as it is located in close proximity to the conflict and has become an exit door for Ukrainian grain.

The consequences have been disastrous for local farmers who have to contend with unequal competition from imports. Moreover, the port of Constanta slowed its own exports as it served Ukrainian grain.

Numerous protests were held in the country, various options for strengthening the local market were discussed, but when the time came for action, the rulers took a different position.

We remind you that the ban on the import of Ukrainian grain to countries close to the conflict was initiated by five countries, including Bulgaria, but Romania preferred not to be actively involved, for which it subsequently received a significant part of the European money given to help with the consequences from the war.

After the Russian attacks on the Ukrainian ports on the Danube, Romanian merchants said that the pressure on them has decreased, but that is not the view of Foreign Minister Luminica-Teodora Odobescu, who told Politico in an interview that "Romania is working to find more ways to assistance in the transportation of Ukrainian grain'.

Odobescu highlighted how Bucharest has made efforts in recent months to boost the transit of Ukrainian grain through Romania, including by expanding capacity at ports and border crossings.

"It takes time to see the results," she said of the Romanian government's efforts to support alternative grain transit, undertaken with the support of the European Commission.

Asked if Romania would support extending the ban on imports from Ukraine beyond September 15, she said: "We have to find the right balance. There is a need to continue our support for Ukraine by helping them transit their grain. But it is also necessary to find solutions to help farmers in the affected regions financially."

In terms of trade, at the beginning of the week the prices of grain for delivery to the port of Constanta were: bread wheat - 229 EUR/ton, feed wheat - 211 EUR/ton, corn - 204 EUR/ton, barley - 179 EUR/ton, sunflower – 419 dollars/ton.