Ambassadors of EU member states have reached a compromise regarding extension of trade liberalization with Ukraine, announced the Belgian presidency of the EU Council on Wednesday on the X platform.
“The EU ambassadors have agreed to a new compromise regarding the extension of autonomous trade measures (ATM) for Ukraine, ensuring a balanced approach between supporting Ukraine and protecting EU agricultural markets,” the statement reads.
The agreement partially incorporates the demands of Poland, France, and the European Parliament - the reference period for calculating import quotas will be from June 2021 to the end of 2023. This is a compromise, as Warsaw, Paris, and the EP advocated for including the entire year 2021.
The agreement will now be sent back to the European Parliament, which will vote on the changes during the April plenary session.
The new agreement on duty-free trade between the EU and Ukraine is set to come into effect on June 6 and will be valid for one year. The agreement has been subject to lengthy negotiations and renegotiations.
This became necessary after the European Parliament introduced amendments to the draft during the plenary session in mid-March and referred it back for supplementary negotiations between the EP and the Council.
Although negotiators from the EP and the EU Council reached an agreement on March 20 regarding the extension of the list of products subject to import restrictions from Ukraine - adding grains and honey to eggs, poultry, and sugar - contrary to the EP’s demands, the period under consideration in determining import quotas was not extended to include 2021.
As a result, France and Poland, at the level of permanent representatives to the EU, formed a blocking minority and secured further negotiations.
The agreement partially incorporates the demands of Poland, France, and the European Parliament - the reference period for calculating import quotas will be from June 2021 to the end of 2023. This is a compromise, as Warsaw, Paris, and the EP advocated for including the entire year 2021.
The agreement will now be sent back to the European Parliament, which will vote on the changes during the April plenary session.
The new agreement on duty-free trade between the EU and Ukraine is set to come into effect on June 6 and will be valid for one year. The agreement has been subject to lengthy negotiations and renegotiations.
This became necessary after the European Parliament introduced amendments to the draft during the plenary session in mid-March and referred it back for supplementary negotiations between the EP and the Council.
Although negotiators from the EP and the EU Council reached an agreement on March 20 regarding the extension of the list of products subject to import restrictions from Ukraine - adding grains and honey to eggs, poultry, and sugar - contrary to the EP’s demands, the period under consideration in determining import quotas was not extended to include 2021.
As a result, France and Poland, at the level of permanent representatives to the EU, formed a blocking minority and secured further negotiations.
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