The State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection of Ukraine and the authorized body of Japan have agreed on the form of the veterinary certificate for exporting raw milk and dairy products to Japan, the service said on its website on Tuesday.
“We continue work towards expanding cooperation with international partners. This is very good news for Ukrainian producers interested in the export of raw milk and dairy products: the market of one of the largest strategic partners for Ukrainian food exports – Japan – has been opened,” the head of the authority, Vladyslava Mahaletska, said.
The State Food and Consumer Service said that the website has the example of a veterinary certificate for export to Japan.
JSC Ukrposhta announced the resumption of export shipments to Ukraine by Japan Post from February 26.
“Ukrposhta will deliver from Japan Express Mail Service [EMS] items ordered by Ukrainians and those that are delivered by plane,” the Ukrainian postal operator said on Friday.
The company recalled that until February 7, Japan Post had restrictions in its work and, accordingly, the shipment of postal items to other countries was limited.
At the same time, Ukrposhta notes that the export of Ukrainian goods to Japan did not stop even during the pandemic.
“In January, 95% of EMS items were delivered to the Japanese post offices within seven days, and 5% within two weeks,” the Ukrainian postal operator said.
Since the beginning of the quarantine, Ukrposhta has ensured the delivery of EMS items to 57 countries, now items are delivered to 120 countries, and after the stabilization of air traffic and the restoration of full-fledged work of national post offices, the service will be available for delivery to 195 countries.
During a working visit to Japan Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Shinichi Kitaoka, the press service of the head of state reported on Wednesday. “Cooperation with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is extremely important for our country, especially in the context of implementing large-scale reforms that are taking place now. Recently, the government approved an action plan for the next five years. We really believe that this program will not be implemented in theory, but in practice. This includes the development of human capital and economy, European integration and improving the security and welfare of Ukrainian citizens,” Zelensky said during the meeting, adding that the implementation of this plan will create a million additional jobs in the country.
The head of state said that the priorities of the current authorities of Ukraine include launching the land market, large-scale privatization, deregulation and simplification of all procedures with the transition to online services, elimination of the shadow economy and corruption schemes, solving infrastructure problems, optimizing the tax system, quickly and comprehensively introducing European and international standards.
The president thanked the agency for supporting Ukraine under the Official Development Assistance (ODA) program.
“We appreciate the technical assistance of Japan to support democratic institutions, ensure macroeconomic stability and concessional lending for important infrastructure projects in Ukraine,” Zelensky said.
The president said that one of the striking results of Ukraine’s joint work with JICA was the successful completion of the modernization of the Boryspil International Airport (Kyiv) through a soft loan. At the same time, Zelensky noted the importance of implementing the second project, namely, the modernization of the Bortnychi wastewater treatment plant, which will help prevent environmental pollution and increase the safety of people’s lives.
“I hope that in the near future a contract will be signed with the general contractor and construction work at the facility will begin from early next year,” he said.
The president announced Ukraine’s interest in continuing fruitful cooperation with JICA. Important promising infrastructure projects, in particular, may be the construction of a bridge over the Pivdenny Buh River in Mykolaiv as part of the improvement of the southern transport corridor; and preparing a project for the processing of solid household waste.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at a meeting with Chairman of the Japan-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Association Eysuke Mori has discussed possibilities for deepening economic and investment cooperation between Ukraine and Japan, the press service of the Office of the President has reported.
At the meeting, the parties discussed cooperation in the implementation of infrastructure projects in Ukraine, mutually beneficial projects in the fields of energy, transport, agriculture, and environmental protection.
“Today we need to modernize and unite Ukraine. To this end, our parliament adopts many laws. For example, a concession law, because we need to restore and modernize the Ukrainian infrastructure: ports, railways, roads, bridges, and dams,” Zelensky said.
He also said that a new parliamentary group has been established for inter-parliamentary relations with Japan, which includes 117 deputies, 80 of whom, including the co-chair of the group, represent the Servant of the People political party.
The parties exchanged experience on overcoming the consequences of nuclear emergencies. Zelensky noted the effectiveness of the Ukrainian-Japanese joint committee on cooperation in improving the response to emergencies at nuclear power plants.
“We confirm our intention to continue cooperation on overcoming the aftermath of the accident at the Fukushima 1 nuclear power plant through interaction between our countries within the so-called Fukushima-Chornobyl mechanism. A promising area of activity is the development and implementation of new technologies for the disposal of radioactive waste,” the head of the Ukrainian state said.
The Japanese side praised the results of their visit to Ukraine in September 2019. It was noted that this visit gave a new impetus to the development of inter-parliamentary dialogue and the full range of cooperation between the countries.
In turn, Zelensky thanked for the consistent policy of the government and parliament of Japan to support the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, in particular within international organizations, as well as for large-scale humanitarian and financial assistance from Japan for the implementation of structural reforms.
“We greatly appreciate your country’s assistance in restoring Donbas and supporting internally displaced persons from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. I feel your friendly attitude towards us,” he said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has begun a working visit to Japan; he will attend the ceremony of the new Japanese emperor’s enthronization amongst other events, the Office of the Ukrainian President said in a statement on Facebook. “The visit program includes the chief of states’ meetings with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, heads of both chambers of the Japanese parliament, members of the Japan-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Association, heads of the Japan International Cooperation Agency and the Japan Association of New Economy, and representatives of the Japanese business community,” the statement said.
The work schedule of the Ukrainian president also includes a series of bilateral meetings with foreign leaders, it said.
Ukraine is interested in cooperation with Japan in the sphere of IT, the press service of the government has reported after a meeting of Ukrainian Prime Minister Oleksiy Honcharuk with a Japanese delegation.
“During the meeting, the issue of possible cooperation in the field of information technology was discussed,” the press service said.
The head of the Japan-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship League Eisuke Mori said that the IT vector could be the impetus for the development of Ukraine.
In turn, Honcharuk added that today, the IT industry is one of the most progressive in Ukraine. “One of the priorities of our government is the development of IT. We would be glad to consider the opportunity of sharing experience with you,” the prime minister said.
In addition, Honcharuk said that Ukraine plans to invest in projects in the exclusion zone of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant and will be glad if Japan becomes a partner in this matter. In this regard, Mori said that the safety associated with nuclear energy should be one of the key areas of bilateral cooperation.
