The Governments of Ukraine and China are working on the preparation of a visa waiver agreement between the countries, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Ukraine Fan Xianjun said.
“We are now actively working to sign an intergovernmental agreement on a visa-free travel between China and Ukraine,” the ambassador said at a press conference in Kyiv on Thursday.
He said the signing of such a document would provide maximum travel facilities for nationals of the two countries and would promote mutual understanding and mutually beneficial cooperation between the states.
Mining enterprises of Ukraine in January-May this year reduced exports of iron ore raw materials (iron ore) in quantity terms by 1.8% compared to the same period last year, to 18.536 million tonnes.
According to statistics released by the State Customs Service on Wednesday, during the specified period, foreign exchange earnings from iron ore exports increased 2.1-fold, to $3.132 billion.
Iron ore was exported mainly to China (45.44% of supplies in monetary terms), the Czech Republic (9.41%) and Austria (8.36%).
In January-May 2021, iron ore was imported to Ukraine for $127,000 in a total volume of 1,130 tonnes, while in January-May 2020, iron ore was imported from the Netherlands for $28,000, from Sweden for $10,000, from Germany for $1,000 and from Hungary $1,000 in the total volume of 84 tonnes.
In January-May 2021, iron ore was imported from Egypt (81.75%), Poland (10.32%) and Chile (2.38%).
China is interested in increasing the supply of Ukrainian soybeans, peas, barley, wheat, as well as poultry and other products, the Ministry of Economy said, following a meeting between First Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Economy Oleksiy Liubchenko and Chinese Ambassador to Ukraine Fan Xianrong on June 10. “Today we’ve heard from our Chinese partners confirmation of interest in deepening economic cooperation, increasing exports of Ukrainian agricultural products, building infrastructure and implementing joint investment projects in transport, construction, energy, IT and other areas,” the press service of the ministry said citing Oleksiy Liubchenko.
According to the report, the meeting was also attended by Deputy Minister Volodymyr Hryniuk and Deputy Minister-Trade Representative of Ukraine Taras Kachka, as well as representatives of the leadership of the Chinese Embassy in Ukraine.
The parties also noted the importance of signing an intergovernmental agreement on deepening cooperation in the construction of infrastructure in the near future, the ministry said.
“This step will allow starting preparatory work for the launch of investment projects, including the construction of the M-22 Poltava-Oleksandriya road and the first part of the Kyiv circular road – sections M05-M06, which will cost about $ 1.1 billion,” the ministry said.
It is also important to continue work on the development of freight traffic in the direction of China-Western Europe through the territory of Ukraine, the report notes.
In addition, the Chinese side stressed the importance of the implementation of the intergovernmental initiative of Ukraine and China “One Belt-One Road.” The matter concerns preparing a roadmap for the implementation of a program of cooperation between the two countries within the framework of the joint construction of the “Silk Road Economic Belt” and “21st Century Maritime Silk Road,” the ministry added.
The Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation and the working committee of China’s Association of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises signed a memorandum of cooperation for the development of bilateral cooperation in the agricultural sector, the Ukrainian Grain Association (UGA) reported on its website on Tuesday, which also joined the signing of this document.
“Today, in the current grain season, Ukraine has exported to China about 10 million tonnes of grain, potentially could increase the export rate by 2-3 times over time. The bulk of grain exports to China accounts for corn and barley. And it is necessary to sign the appropriate interstate phytosanitary protocols to open the Chinese market for Ukrainian wheat, sorghum, peas and other crops,” the press service said, citing President of the Ukrainian Grain Association Mykola Horbachev.
According to the association, the parties will jointly create a Chinese-Ukrainian Council for International Cooperation in Agriculture, in particular for the development of modern agricultural trade and industrial park projects.
China asks Ukraine to properly resolve the conflict issue surrounding the purchase of Motor Sich shares by Chinese investors, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a briefing, answering a question from the RIA Novosti Russian state agency about the reaction to possible nationalization enterprises by decree of the President of Ukraine.
“China asks the Ukrainian side to protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises and investors in accordance with the law and properly resolve the relevant issues,” Chunying said in a transcript of the March 25 briefing on the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s website.
The spokesperson said that the Foreign Ministry was informed about the relevant documents on Motor Sich.
Some Chinese companies cooperate with Crimea on market principles, based on historical ties and practical needs, and such commercial activities should not be politicized, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian has said.
“China’s position on the Crimea issue is consistent. We hope relevant sides can properly address the issue through dialogue and consultation. Some Chinese companies, based on historically-established ties and practical needs, conduct exchanges and cooperation with Crimea on the basis of market principles. Such commercial activities should not be politicized,” he said at a press conference, the content of which was published on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
Thus, the spokesperson commented on the visit of the Chinese delegation to Crimea and the statement of Ukrainian MP from the Opposition Platform – For Life faction Vadym Rabinovych that this is “China’s retaliatory move in connection with Ukraine’s position on Motor Sich.”
As reported, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, by decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC), on January 29 imposed sanctions on Chinese citizen Wang Jing and related Beijing Xinwei Technology Group Co., Ltd; Beijing Skyrizon Aviation Industry Investment Co., Ltd (both are based in Beijing); Skyrizon Aircraft Holdings Limited (British Virgin Islands) and Hong Kong Skyrizon Holdings Limited (Hong Kong), which in recent years have been trying to implement the rights of PJSC Motor Sich shareholders, who are placed on the sanctions list of Ukraine.
According to the decision of the NSDC and Zelensky decree No. 29 dated January 28, 2021, the sanctions imposed for three years provide, in particular, the blocking of assets, restriction of trade operations, partial or complete cessation of the transit of resources, flights and transportation across the territory of Ukraine. Other restrictions include preventing the withdrawal of capital from Ukraine, a complete ban on transactions with securities of which they are issuers, and a ban on the purchase of enterprises in Ukraine. The list of sanctions also includes a ban on increasing the size of the charter capital of business entities in which sub-sanctioned persons own 10% or more, and cancellation of official visits, meetings, negotiations on the conclusion of contracts or agreements.
