"This decision was made as a side-step decision. Both decisions - on possible introduction of regime of most favored nation treatment and on food embargo were taken as deferred decisions. If certain decision[s] are not made until January 1, one of these decision[s] will come into force automatically," he said, according to TASS.
The elimination of risks is to be discussed at the Russia-EU-Ukraine ministerial meeting in Brussels on December 1.
Earlier Ulyukayev said that European and Ukrainian sides refused to draft legally binding documents related to the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement, that is why the chances to agree on that matter in Brussels were small.
Russia, the EU and Ukraine are to prepare legally binding documents - inter-governmental agreements or international agreements on the subject. The expert round of talks was held in early October. For that meeting, the EU had prepared its own version of a document to resolve the risks. Ulyukayev said that then the experts considered it unacceptable and decided to work out a contract option proposed by the Russian side. According to him, if the Russian proposals are not accepted in a legally binding form, Russia will introduce a normal trade regime for Ukraine, without any preferences it gave it earlier.
Read alsoUkraine to retaliate in case of Russia's embargo – Ukraine's Trade RepresentativeRussia’s proposals in particular include a parallel application of technical regulations of Russia, the Customs Union /Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan/ and the new EU regulations for Ukraine until 2025. Russia also prepares to establish quotas for Ukrainian goods from the so-called "risk group" in case EU-Ukraine DCFTA is implemented.
As UNIAN reported earlier, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Urkaine's Prime Minister, estimated potential damage caused by the food embargo at $600 million in 2016.
European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmstrom has said that the DCFTA will enter into force on January 1, 2016, and Russia "will have to accept" that.
