REUTERS
Ukrainian economy will develop by European standards, as provided by the accords with the EU, particularly the Agreement on a Free Trade Zone with the EU, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Friday during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin.
"The agreement on free trade zone with the EU will come into force. Russia, like any other country, has no veto on our bilateral relations with the EU. The Agreement [on FTZ – UNIAN] is aimed at developing relations between Ukraine and the EU, and is not relevant to relations with Russia,” said Yatsenyuk. “We have a multilateral agreement on a free trade zone between Ukraine and the CIS, which Russia has not been fulfilling. Finally, we have held four rounds of consultations - political and technical - on the implementation of the Agreement on a free trade area with the EU, but we have not seen from the Russians any substantive discussion on what frightens their economy so much. And finally: Russia has begun to reduce the mutual trade with Ukraine ten years ago. Before we were completely dependent on the Russian market, and now our dependence is at 12%. Therefore, let Russia determine, by it is willing to develop its economy. We have determined: the Ukrainian economy will meet the European standards."
Earlier, the Prime Minister noted that Ukraine will become part of the European Economic Area, with the implementation of the Agreement on a free trade area, despite opposition from other countries and political forces.