Tractors blockade Brussels EU headquarters

Paul Serran – The Gateway Pundit Feb 6, 2024

After months of continental mobilization, all signs seem to indicate that farmers have achieved a major victory against the European Union and its failed, crippling ‘green’ policies and regulations.

Unprecedented protests rocked Europe from east to west, from north to south. A non-exhausting list would include France, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Ireland, Italy, and of course Belgium – with farmers converging to Brussels to protest in front of the European Parliament.

Mostly, the MSM tried to characterize the protest as being about ‘subsidies’ and ‘protection against products from lesser regulated countries’ – but a core demand that united all nationalities was the stark rejection of the ‘Global warming’ climate alarmism, and the policies and regulations derived from it.

One such monstrosity is the ‘Sustainable Use Regulation’ (SUR), who aimed to halve the use of pesticides – and possibly bankrupt all the farmers in the process.

Now, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed withdrawing the EU’s plan, calling it a ‘symbol of polarization’.

Reuters reported:

“‘Our farmers deserve to be listened to’, Von der Leyen told the European Parliament.

‘I know that they are worried about the future of agriculture and their future as farmers. But they also know that agriculture needs to move to a more sustainable model of production so that their farms remain profitable in the years to come’.”

Besides farmers protesting against rising costs, taxes, and cheap food imports, one main demand is against constraints meant ‘to fight climate change’.

European farmers’ lobby COPA-COGECA welcomed Von der Leyen’s remarks:

“‘The EU Commission finally acknowledges that its approach was not the right one, and so strengthens the credibility and importance of the current strategic dialogue’, the lobby’s president Christiane Lambert said in a post on social media platform X.”

This was not the first or only ‘concession’ by the EU. Last week, the EU proposed ‘an exemption on rules requiring farmers to leave part of their land fallow’.

“Belgian’s Prime Minister Alexander De Croo welcomed the proposal in a post on X, saying it was ‘crucial we keep our farmers on board to a more sustainable future of farming, as part of our determination to get the Green Deal done’.”

So, in an attempt to undo the knot that farmers tied around Europe’s cities and roads, Ursula von der Leyen announced today (6) the withdrawal of the SUR, marking ‘the first defeat of the Green Deal’.

Euronews reported:

“The so-called Sustainable Use Regulation (SUR) was first tabled in June 2022 with the ambitious goal of slashing by half the use of pesticides by 2030. It also envisioned the total prohibition of these products in sensitive areas, such as urban green spaces and Natura 2000 sites, and promoted the uptake of low-risk alternatives.”

Chemical pesticides are said to constitute a major source of pollution, and have reportedly been linked to ‘biodiversity loss, poor-quality water, degraded soils, pest resistance and chronic illnesses’.

“‘The Commission proposed SUR, with the worthy aim to reduce the risks of chemical plant protection products’, von der Leyen said on Tuesday, speaking before the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

‘But the SUR proposal has become a symbol of polarization. It has been rejected by the European Parliament. There is no progress anymore in the Council either. That is why I will propose to the College to withdraw this proposal’.”

Source

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