Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal and Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland discussed the expansion of the free trade agreement (FTA) and the liberalization of the visa regime.
“An important basis for the development of economic cooperation between Ukraine and Canada is the Free Trade Agreement, and currently, both parties face the ambitious task of expanding their impact on investment and services,” the government’s press service said.
Shmyhal stressed the importance of supporting free trade area in the context of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
“We believe that Canada’s policy of open international trade and export support, which is also pursued by Canada, is one of the measures to effectively counter the spread of the pandemic. I am convinced that these are the first steps on the path of work on the updated Free Trade Agreement,” the head of government said.
He expressed confidence that despite the difficult situation amid the fight against the pandemic, Ukraine and Canada will continue to actively develop bilateral cooperation.
“Trade and economic cooperation remain a priority of our cooperation. Each new challenge opens up new prospects for development, so we must consolidate our efforts to overcome the negative effects of the coronavirus pandemic as soon as possible and continue to increase bilateral trade,” the prime minister said.
In turn, Freeland said that Canada is interested in expanding the Free Trade Agreement with Ukraine and is ready to work in this direction.
According to Shmyhal, Ukraine is completing the formation of its delegation for the relevant talks. The parties agreed that it is necessary to organize the work of an intergovernmental working group in the near future, which will draft a document.
In addition, the prime minister noted Ukraine’s high interest in visa liberalization and the readiness to host a group of Canadian experts in Ukraine to monitor the state of Ukraine’s compliance with Canada’s criteria.
Shmyhal told the Deputy Prime Minister of Canada about the “Crimean Platform” and invited Canada to join its activities.
In addition, the prime minister invited Freeland to Ukraine to celebrate the 30th anniversary of independence.
