KYIV. March 2 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko during a meeting with Vice President of the European Commission for Energy Union Maros Sefcovic in Kyiv have discussed the matters of cooperation and further integration of Ukraine into the EU single energy market, and the reform of the Ukrainian energy sector and energy market.
During the talks, Poroshenko urged the European Commission to promote the organization of an international conference in support of modernization of the Ukrainian gas transport system in the nearest time, the Ukrainian president’s press service reported.
Poroshenko stressed Ukraine’s commitment to implementing reforms, inter alia, in the energy sector. “We have spent a winter without Russian gas. Due to our reliable transit, we didn’t let Russia blackmail us and demonstrated efficient interaction with the European Commission,” the head of state said.
The president has once again emphasized this position regarding the Nord Stream 2 project. “This is a purely political project and it should be blocked. We count on the European Commission’s support, for it is an instrument to punish Ukraine for its European aspirations,” Poroshenko noted.
The head of state expressed the hope that the Ukrainian parliament will soon consider the law on the electricity market, which was previously agreed with the Energy Union.
The president underlined the importance of the decision on the establishment of the visa-free regime between Ukraine and the EU.
In his turn, the vice president of the European Commission praised Ukraine’s efforts on the track of European reforms and stressed the importance of continuing their implementation.
“Sefcovic noted close interaction between the European Union and Ukraine in the issues of common energy policy and underlined Ukraine’s considerable progress on the path towards gas independence,” the statement reads.
The parties discussed future steps aimed at enhancing energy independence, improving energy efficiency of the Ukrainian economy, implementing legislative amendments concerning the national JSC Naftogaz Ukrainy and creating conditions for the involvement of foreign investors in the energy sector of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian president invited leaders of the European Commission to take part in the commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Chornobyl tragedy in April 2016.
