Results of the “Consultations on the Ukraine-EU Free Trade Agreement” project presented

On 22 December, ICPS presented results of a project called “Consultations on the Ukraine-EU Free Trade Agreement.” Undertaken by the International Center for Policy Studies (ICPS) in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy, this project was supported by the Swedish Agency for International Development and the Open Society Institute’s (OSI) Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative (LGI).

The main purpose of this project was to assist the Government of Ukraine in building up a strong position of its side in the negotiations to sign a free trade agreement with the European Union. Official talks with the EU could start immediately after Ukraine accedes to the World Trade Organization, which is likely to take place in Spring 2007.

For Ukraine, it is important that the agreement cover not only trade issues but also the regulatory policy, which presumes deep free trade. ICPS specialists say that deep free trade with the EU could serve as a tool to modernize the Ukraine’s economy and support the sustained growth. Deep free trade with the EU would also simultaneously open EU markets to Ukrainian goods, services, capital and workers.

Under the “Consultations on the Ukraine-EU Free Trade Agreement” project, the impact of such a free trade arrangement on the agriculture, food, chemical and light industries, on metallurgy, power engineering and machine-building, on the financial services market, and on transportation and telecommunications was analyzed. The advantages of this agreement were also considered: the development of a more favorable investment climate, better food quality, increased trade volumes and greater workforce mobility. In addition, measures were i den tified that Ukraine will have to take in order to meet EU standards relating to intellectual property rights, environmental norms, state aid, and state procurement policy.

Altogether, 15 events were organized during the project with the participation of representatives of government and business and indepen den t experts. After the various discussions, analytical briefs were put together, containing various possible outcomes of a Free Trade Agreement with the EU for each of these sectors of Ukraine’s economy, stakeholder positions, and recommendations for future negotiations. These briefs are available at: http://icps.com.ua/project.html?pid=110/.

For more information, contact project manager Olha Shumylo.