At the 22nd Ukraine-EU Summit, the Ukrainian delegation presented a vision for renewing the Association Agreement in the field of trade and sectoral cooperation, as stated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a press conference following the Summit.
"During the Summit, we paid considerable attention to the implementation of the Association Agreement. We have agreed to make the most of its mechanisms in order to further develop our trade relations and deepen economic integration between Ukraine and the European Union. At the same time, our delegation presented its vision for the renewal of the Association Agreement in the field of trade and sectoral cooperation. The free trade area must correspond to the realities of today - both the Ukrainian economy and the economy and the legislative field of the European Union," the President said.
One of the key results of the Summit, he said, was the agreement to begin in 2021 a joint assessment of the achievements of the goals of the Association Agreement, which will be the driving force for its further renewal.
"We have discussed the deepening of sectoral integration. Our discussions focused on the integration into the EU Digital Single Market, integration of energy markets of Ukraine and the European Union, cooperation in the implementation of the European green course," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
The President also announced the intention to move towards an agreement on "industrial visa-free regime".
"An EU expert mission has already begun work to assess Ukraine's readiness to conclude an Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products," he said.
In addition, according to the Head of State, the parties discussed terms of signing the Agreement on the Common Aviation Area, which has been on our agenda for many years.
"We have been assured that all technical issues will be resolved by all means, and this Agreement will be signed as soon as possible," the President said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that today's Ukraine-EU Summit demonstrated an extremely profound level of bilateral partnership and unity of positions on all fundamental issues.
"We enjoy full understanding, trust - which is very important - and we hope that we will soon mark the positive results of the agreements reached today," he said.
Answering questions from the media, the President of Ukraine stated that he had received assurances from European partners that it would be possible to sign the Common Aviation Area Agreement early next year.
President of the European Council Charles Michel noted that the Association Agreement aimed to create conditions for Ukraine to gradually integrate into the European internal market.
"This is the most ambitious agreement that the European Union has with any country," he said, stressing that the EU intends to deepen cooperation with Ukraine in the field of IT and "green" energy.
Charles Michel stressed that Ukraine had made great strides in implementing the Association Agreement under the leadership of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell reiterated the importance of partnership between Ukraine and the European Union, the deepening of which will be facilitated by the agreements signed today within the Summit.
He also noted Volodymyr Zelenskyy's leadership in advancing reforms in Ukraine, including land reform, the banking law, tax reform and anticorruption reform.
