Protesting farmers clashed with police in Poland’s capital on Wednesday, in a row over grain supplies from Ukraine.
The farmers and their supporters gathered outside the prime minister’s office in Warsaw and marched towards parliament, where they were met by riot police.
Protesters threw rocks and firecrackers at the officers, who responded with pepper spray, tear gas and stun grenades. Sporadic fighting broke out, with police using batons to push back the angry farmers.
Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski said 23 “provocateurs” were detained on Wednesday. A total of 13 officers were injured, including one who suffered a “serious” head trauma, Warsaw Police wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Around 30,000 people took part in the protest, according to city hall spokeswoman Monika Beuth. Inspector Robert Szumiata said that although the protest was initially “overwhelmingly peaceful,” there were “groups of people who only sought to confront the police.”
The farmers took to the streets to denounce EU ‘Green Deal’ laws aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change.
“These are absurd regulations that farmers must conform to, which will only make the situation worse and raise production costs and product prices,” one activist told AFP news agency.
Polish farmers have also been blocking checkpoints at the border with Ukraine, arguing that imports of cheap grain and other produce are killing their businesses.
Kiev has denied that Ukrainian grain is being sold in Poland, and has accused the protesters of hurting the Ukrainian economy during its armed conflict with Russia. The blockades “went beyond both economics and morality long ago,” Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said on Sunday.
Ukrainian officials have also claimed that Russia was influencing the protesters in order to damage Kiev’s ties with Poland. Moscow has denied any involvement.