How EU is strengthening steel market protection and what Ukraine should do
On 7 October, the European Commission officially released a draft of a new regulation, COM(2025)726 (Proposal for a regulation of the European parliament and if the Council addressing the negative trade-related effects of global overcapacity on the Union steel market), intended to replace the current safeguard measures on steel imports after June 2026 in the EU.
This is not a technical adjustment but the creation of a new system of trade protection that will determine access to the European steel market for years to come.
The new document introduces tariff-rate quotas for all major categories of steel products, with a 50% duty applied to volumes exceeding the quota.
Only three countries (Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) are exempt from this duty.
Read more about Ukraine’s special mention in this document and how this exceptional status can be turned into a development tool in a column by Olha Bielkova of FTI Consulting Brussels: EU changes steel import rules: how Ukraine should act and what Russian quotas have to do with It.
The author draws attention to the fact that Ukraine is explicitly mentioned in the text of the European regulation:
"Interests of a candidate country facing an exceptional and immediate security situation, such as Ukraine, should also be reflected upon when deciding on the quota allocations, without undermining the effectiveness of the measure." (Preamble, paragraph 25)
"This is not just a diplomatic gesture. Such wording creates a legal basis for a special approach in allocating quotas under Article 4(g), which allows the European Commission to consider ‘special circumstances of individual countries.’ In other words, it enables a political decision," emphasises Olha Bielkova.
She calls on Kyiv to turn this exceptional status into a development tool: what is needed is clear strategic communication, both from the government and from the producers themselves, who must speak with one united voice in Brussels.
According to the Senior Adviser at FTI Consulting Brussels, Ukraine should insist on receiving the quotas for trade with the EU that previously belonged to Russia and Belarus.
The expert reminds that after sanctions were imposed, steel imports from Russia and Belarus were almost entirely banned. However, their quotas in key categories (hot-rolled coil, pipes and long products) remain conditionally unallocated.
At the same time, under paragraphs 15–18 of the preamble and Article 4(3), the European Commission has the right to reallocate quotas among countries considering "trade restrictions or exceptional circumstances."
"For Ukraine, this is not only a technical opportunity but also a moral and political one. Every ton of Ukrainian steel sold on the European market replaces a ton of Russian steel that once financed preparations for war," the author notes.
She warns that new quotas will be distributed in 2026, and if Ukraine does not take an active stance, the benefits of the conditionally free volumes may be granted to other partners.
Bielkova also stresses that Ukraine must approach Brussels with a single, well-argued proposal from all major producers – Ferrexpo, Metinvest, Interpipe, ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih and others. This should be a unified market position, not just statements from individual companies.
The government, together with the customs service, must establish a single "melt and pour" verification system recognised by the EU.
"All statements, from the government, associations, and companies, should contain one clear message: if there is any country that has the moral right to claim the former trade volumes of Russia and Belarus, it is Ukraine, whose steelmakers are rebuilding destroyed plants, supporting the economy and standing firm despite the war," emphasises the Senior Adviser at FTI Consulting Brussels.