Farmers block highways across Greece in protest over rising costs and EU trade deal

Описание: (8 Jan 2026)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kastro, Greece - 08 January 2026
1. Tractors preparing to block a highway
2. Various of tractors driven to block highway
3. Various of farmers at protest
4. SOUNDBITE (Greek) Yiannis Baritas, cabbage farmer:
“We’ve reached a breaking point, no way anymore. We took it as long as we could, that's it. We don't have any more courage and stamina, we had to do this, I don't know where it will take us."
5. Various of tractors and farmers blocking road
6. Various of farmers sitting inside tent to stay warm
7. Various of farmers tractors and farmers blocking road
8. SOUNDBITE (Greek) Vangelis Roubis, farmer and protest organizer:
“If this agreement goes through, (Mercosur), if products come into Europe, within five years there will be no farmers (in Greece). Greece is a country that depends on agriculture and tourism. We don’t have heavy industry like Germany or France. If this agreement is validated, as things show us (it will be bad)."
9. Various of tractors and farmers blocking road
10. Driving shot of tractors by side of main highway


STORYLINE:
Farmers in Greece escalated nationwide protests Thursday, launching a 48-hour blockade of major highways, junctions and toll stations over soaring production costs and a contentious European Union trade deal with South American nations.

Tractors lined key routes across the country, halting all traffic except emergency vehicles.

Police directed traffic to secondary routes when possible and did not intervene to counter the blockades.

But the country’s conservative government has warned that it would not tolerate extended blockades.

The country’s main highway connecting Athens to the northern city of Thessaloniki was shut in both directions at several points, as farmers demanded stronger state support and the rejection of the EU-Mercosur agreement.

“We’ve reached a breaking point,” Yiannis Baritas, a cabbage farmer, said at roadblock in southern Greece.

“They’ve pushed us to desperation.”

The protests, which began in November, initially centered on relief from rising production costs, worsened by a series of crises: a subsidy fraud scandal delaying legitimate payments, and a sheep and goat pox outbreak.

The government on Wednesday announced late concessions to try and head off the latest protests including cheaper electricity rates for farmers and fuel tax rebates.

The proposed trade deal would create a vast free-trade zone between Europe and South American nations including Brazil and Argentina.

But European farmers fear it would flood the market with cheaper imports – triggering protests in multiple countries.

"If this agreement goes through, (Mercosur), if products come into Europe, within five years there will be no farmers (in Greece),” Vangelis Roubis, a protest organizer, told the Associated Press outside the southern city of Halkida.

“Greece depends on agriculture and tourism. We don’t have heavy industry like Germany or France."

Roubis pointed to potatoes as an example: Greek farmers need 35 to 40 cents per kilogram to break even, compared with roughly 10 cents in Brazil.

AP video by: Lefteris Pitarakis
Produced by: Derek Gatopoulos and Thanassis Stavrakis
Kantouris



===========================================================

Clients are reminded to adhere to all listed restrictions and to check the terms of their licence agreements. For further assistance, please contact the AP Archive on: Tel +44(0)2074827482 Email: [email protected].

Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter:   / ap_archive  
Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​
Instagram:   / apnews  


You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...