The support package of EUR 190 million provided by the European Union to Ukraine covers support for the culture and creative sector of Ukraine as well, Head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine Matti Maasikas has said.
At the Creative Ukraine forum in Kyiv on Thursday, Maasikas said the EU has shown solidarity with Ukraine in the face of the pandemic crisis by quickly mobilizing EUR 190 million support package covering the health crisis and social and economic relief, in particular for small and medium-sized enterprises, which also covers the creative sector, vulnerable groups and civil society.
The head of the EU Delegation also said that culture and creativity will remain an important part of the EU and Ukrainian cooperation, both the sector itself and views and values that the EU shares with the Ukrainian people.
The creative economy should become a priority for the strategic development of Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
“The creative economy should become a priority of Ukraine’s strategic development. For this we have talented people, a unique cultural resource, we have a heritage. Now the creative industries are reminiscent of a Phoenix that rises from the ashes: it rises renewed, young, strong and adapted to a new life and to a new reality,” he said in his welcoming speech at the Creative Ukraine IV annual International Forum, which is held on Thursday.
Zelensky said that the state, in turn, will do everything to make the new reality for the creative industry comfortable and the conditions as favorable as possible.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said his retest for coronavirus (COVID-19) has so far been positive, and he continues to remain in self-isolation.
“My retest, unfortunately, is still positive, but I continue to work every day. This is my job. The only difference is that I work not on Bankova Street, but on Academician Zabolotny Street [where the Feofaniya clinical hospital is located],” he said in his blog on Wednesday.
Zelensky said he feels better. “The smells are back today. Strength is returning. The temperature is dropping. The desire to return to live work is rising,” he said.
Zelensky expressed the hope that the next video will be recorded from outside the hospital.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has approved a draft agreement with the government of the Republic of Indonesia on the mutual cancellation of visa requirements.
The corresponding decision was made at a government meeting on Wednesday.
The draft agreement provides for the possibility of visa-free travel by citizens of the countries of the parties for up to 30 days during each visit of Ukrainian citizens to Indonesia and for up to 30 days within 60 days for travel of Indonesian citizens to Ukraine.
Ukraine has fulfilled all the obligations assumed during the meetings of the Mixed Commissions on International Road Freight Transport, but the Polish side does not honor the agreement at the presidential level, the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine has said.
As reported on the website of the Ministry of Infrastructure, a working meeting of the Ministers of Infrastructure of Ukraine and the Republic of Poland Vladyslav Krykliy and Andrzej Adamczyk was held in Kyiv on Monday, during which the Ukrainian minister pointed out the fact that Ukraine’s fulfillment of its obligations led to a significant increase in the share of use of permits for 2019 by Polish haulers.
Krykliy reiterated that Poland should lift transit restrictions for Ukrainian haulers, since this negatively affects not only trade relations between the two countries, but also with other EU countries.
At the same time, he said that Ukrainian haulers are ready to compete in the two-sided market.
The ministers of Ukraine and Poland also discussed the work of crossing points across the Ukrainian-Polish border, in particular, the Korcheva-Krakovets point.
In addition, Krykliy said that currently the Verkhovna Rada is expected to consider at second reading a bill that solves the problem of VAT payment by work performers and service providers under the so-called “Polish loan,” but asked the Polish side to speed up the work of the construction company to repair the crossing point.
The Ukrainian minister suggested that the Polish side conduct a joint audit to determine the possible reasons for the appearance of queues at the border crossing points with the involvement of a third independent party, and introduce general border and customs control at crossing points to increase their efficiency.
