EU Announced Trade Talks with Ukraine

Tomorrow, Brussels will host the seventh Ukraine-EU Association Council meeting, which will raise the issue of trade liberalization. On February 11, Ukraine and the European Union will start the process of negotiations on further trade liberalization. This is stated in the speech of the Executive Vice President of the European Commission Valdis Dombrovskis in the report on the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement implementation. "Tomorrow, Prime Minister Shmyhal and I will also begin reviewing the trade in goods liberalization process, which is provided for in Article 29 of the Association Agreement ... The agreement has great potential and the EU is ready to explore all possibilities for further strengthening our sectoral cooperation and economic integration," Dombrovskis said. He noted that the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU is a unique platform for Ukraine to continue moving along the path of reforms, and for the economies and societies of Ukraine and the EU to become closer. Dombrovskis also noted that the EU also supports Ukraine in the fight against the pandemic. “We have refocused several current and future assistance programs, and more than € 190 million has been channeled to Ukraine to help meet COVID-19 needs. In addition, we are exploring options to help Ukraine gain early access to vaccines. Through the COVAX program in February, Ukraine will receive 117 thousand doses of Pfizer vaccine and 2.2-3.7 million doses of AstraZeneca / Oxford vaccine during the first half of 2021, "he said. Recall, the Ukrainian delegation headed by Prime Minister Denis Shmyhal arrived in Brussels yesterday, where the seventh meeting of the Ukraine-EU Association Council will take place. Shmyhal has already held meetings with European Council President Charles Michel and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.