At the end of April, the European Commission proposed a one-year suspension of import duties on all Ukrainian goods not covered by an existing free trade deal to help the country’s economy during the war with Russia. The measures will, in particular, apply to fruit and vegetables, subject to minimum price requirements, agricultural products facing quotas, and certain industrial goods, tariffs on which were only due to being phased out by the end of 2022. That phase-out, set out in the 2016 EU-Ukraine free trade agreement, applies to fertilizers, aluminum products, and cars.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky claimed to have discussed the proposal with EC president Ursula von der Leyen and wanted to express his gratitude: “Right now, this will allow us to maintain economic activity in Ukraine, our national production, as much as possible. But this decision needs to be considered not only in the Ukrainian context. Sufficient export of our products to European and global markets will be a significant tool against crises.”
The proposal will now need to be agreed on by the European Parliament and EU governments to come into force.