Tractor barricades squeeze Paris as farmers' anger grows across Europe

  • 8 months ago
In Europe, farmers' anger is growing, with Spain the latest country to join the protests.
Transcript
00:00 Farmers block the motorway as they head to Paris to protest restrictive French regulations.
00:06 The workers have stated they have no intention of lifting the blockade on the A1 highway near the Charles de Gaulle airport.
00:13 Their aim is to pressure the government over the future of their industry, which has been shaken by repercussions of the war in Ukraine.
00:20 We have promises, promises, promises, promises, but no action.
00:23 So we are waiting for the actions, and depending on the actions, we will see if we lift the blockade or not.
00:27 We will lift it if we have to lift it.
00:30 But I personally think that if the nationalists who are blocking the motorway are going to Paris,
00:35 I don't necessarily care about being in the Champs-Elysées.
00:38 French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said he would listen to the protesters.
00:43 Obviously, we have taken a resolute action for the agricultural sovereignty of our country.
00:48 I say this here solemnly, there is and there must be a French agricultural exception.
00:54 I am lucid in the face of the stifling of the norms, in the face of the decisions that fall from above and sometimes fall from God knows where.
01:00 Agriculture doubts, it too, and it is waiting for answers and solutions.
01:05 We will be at the rendezvous without any ambiguity.
01:09 Motorway blockades and border pickets are also affecting Spanish and Portuguese transport companies by delaying the export of produce.
01:18 Almost 12,000 trucks pass through the Juncker border daily and 10,000 through the Dirum.
01:24 And France, for us, apart from being a destination, is a country of forced transit.
01:31 And Belgian farmers also continued to block roads on Tuesday, including the main E19 motorway leading to Brussels.
01:39 They said they would remain on the roads until the government meets their demands.
01:44 They were joined by their Italian counterparts, who gathered for the third day in a row with their tractors at a motorway exit near Rome.
01:51 The farmers are peacefully protesting EU agricultural policies, increased production costs, high taxation, low incomes and cuts to diesel benefits.
02:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]

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