The 27 support extending the removal of trade barriers with Ukraine

BRUSSELS, 28 Apr. (EUROPE PRESS) –

The Member States of the European Union have supported this Friday to extend the measures to remove the barriers to trade with Ukraine, an initiative with which the European bloc seeks to strengthen the Ukrainian economy against the impact generated by the Russian invasion.

Despite the differences generated by the importation of grain to neighboring countries of Ukraine, the Swedish presidency of the Council has reported that the Twenty-seven have reached an agreement to extend the temporary trade liberalization measures adopted in 2022.

This step complements the trade concessions under the EU-Ukraine association agreement. The EU decided to suspend tariffs and other trade barriers such as anti-dumping measures that may be applied to imports from Ukraine for a year, a measure that Brussels has now proposed to renew and that will be adopted once it receives the green light from the European Parliament.

The measure is intended to mitigate the economic damage suffered by the country from the Russian invasion. The European Union and Ukraine have had a free trade association since 2016 to promote trade between the two regions, but it is an agreement of progressive application, so there are still sectors that do not benefit from the “zero quotas and zero tariffs” principle. .