Ukraine and the European Commission agreed to develop new trade terms by the end of July

Ukraine and the European Commission plan to reach an agreement by the end of July on amendments to the Agreement on the Establishment of a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) between Ukraine and the EU, which may include a revision of quotas.

This was stated by Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration – Minister of Justice Olga Stefanishyna during a meeting at the Ministry of Agrarian Policy dedicated to the abolition of the so-called “trade visa-free regime” with the EU – the Autonomous Trade Measures (ATM) regime, which will end on June 6.

“Ukraine and the European Commission have reached agreements in principle on an interim solution in the trade sphere, which will enter into force after June 5 and aims to ensure the continuity of exports of Ukrainian products to the EU. Both sides agreed to determine a permanent format for trade cooperation by the end of July this year. The coming weeks will be crucial for achieving a mutually beneficial and long-term solution,” Stefanishyna stressed.

In turn, Minister of Agricultural Policy Vitaliy Koval noted that Ukraine and the EU should be equal partners.

“The position of the agricultural sector of Ukraine remains unchanged. We support transparent and fair trade and partnership, which takes into account the interests of both Ukrainian producers and European farmers in a balanced way. A consensus on the mechanism for regulating exports should be reached by the end of July. Negotiations are ongoing,” Koval said.

As reported, the EU has decided not to extend the autonomous trade preferences for Ukraine introduced in 2022, known as “visa-free trade”.

After that, trade with Ukraine in the EU will take place according to pre-war rules. In particular, on May 22, the European Commission adopted a list of transitional measures for Ukrainian exports to the EU, which will come into force on June 6. They provide for the restoration of quotas for imports of Ukrainian goods this year in the amount of 7/12 of the usual annual volumes that were in force until 2022. At the same time, the European Commission promised to hold negotiations on amendments to the Agreement on the Establishment of a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) between Ukraine and the EU, which may provide for a revision of quotas.

The Ministry of Economy of Ukraine called this development of events a “worst-case scenario” and called on the EU to maintain the current conditions at least until amendments are made to the DCFTA between Ukraine and the EU. However, negotiations with the EU on amendments to the DCFTA have not even begun yet, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration – Minister of Justice Olga Stefanishyna said on May 9.

Recall that in May 2024, the Council of the European Union approved the extension of the suspension of duties and quotas on imports of Ukrainian goods to the European Union for another year, but with additional safeguards to protect European farmers. The European Commission proposed introducing quotas for some products to protect the EU market. In particular, for eggs, poultry, sugar, oats, corn, cereals and honey.

At that time, the European Commission announced consultations with Ukraine in accordance with Article 29 of the Association Agreement to agree on long-term liberalization of mutual tariffs.

Tags: Ukraine, EU, trade