KYIV. Jan 4 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The agreement on a deep and comprehensive free trade area (FTA) between Ukraine and the European Union on January 1, 2016 came into force after a one-year pause the parties took at Russia’s request for consultations with the country, which failed.
The document was signed on June 27, 2014 as part of the broader Association Agreement.
According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, the FTA eliminates 97% of tariffs on Ukrainian goods and reduces the average tariff on Ukrainian exports from 7.6% to 0.5%.
As for the reduction of import duties on European products, Deputy Economic Minister, Trade Representative of Ukraine Natalia Mykolska has recently stated the entry into force of the FTA would not lead to a large inflow of European goods.
“The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade jointly with the National Bank have developed a forecast for the development of the Ukrainian market after the entry into force of the FTA Agreement with the EU. According to our data, there won’t be a collapse of the national goods market and a huge influx of European goods,” she assured.
