Zelensky voices demands to Ukrainian ambassadors

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he intends to dismiss ambassadors if they fail to deliver results in the economic area while being on post. He made the comment during the plenary session Strategic Priorities of Ukraine's Foreign Policy within a video conference of heads of foreign diplomatic missions of Ukraine, which was broadcast on the Facebook page of the President's Office, as reported by an UNIAN correspondent on December 17. "It is important for Ukraine to be integrated into the world economy. I see that the direction of economic diplomacy has received some renewal in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but so far we don't see the end result. The tasks of each ambassador in this area are as follows: attracting foreign direct investment to Ukraine, promoting Ukrainian exports, defending the interests of Ukrainian business abroad," he said. The president noted that for obvious reasons, in particular due to the coronavirus pandemic, trade turnover between the countries has fallen worldwide this year. But today, every diplomatic representative of the Ukrainian state must look for all opportunities to restore and increase trade. "Please put forward your new ideas, make proposals for initiating new negotiations on free trade areas not only for goods, but also for services, study the markets of your host countries, get acquainted with the main importers and retailers," he stressed. Zelensky believes that in the current conditions, the ambassador should become the best Ukrainian economist in his host country. The president noted that this year, in the framework of the so-called telephone diplomacy, he held 67 phone conversations with heads of state and government, and the lion's share of these talks was devoted to the economy. "I want to emphasize once again that economic achievements in bilateral cooperation are one of the main criteria by which I evaluate and appreciate the work of the ambassador. And I'll tell the newly appointed ambassadors: you have to show the first results of your work in the economic field six months after your appointment. No result – no position of the ambassador," he said. The head of state commissioned Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to develop and submit to the Office of the President a model of key criteria for assessing the effectiveness of ambassadors in the economic field. National budget 2021: Background At a meeting on November 26, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the draft national budget for 2021. The document provides for revenue at UAH 1.092 trillion (US$39.3 billion), while spending is set at UAH 1.328 trillion (US$47.9 billion). The deficit is expected to be 5.5% of GDP next year. At the same time, the Finance Ministry announced it had successfully finalized discussions with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on benchmarks of the national budget draft for 2021, which was one of major prerequisites for starting the first review of the IMF Stand-by Arrangement for Ukraine. On December 15, 2020, the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, passed a draft law on the 2021 national budget. On the same day, the parliament backed the resolution on the Verkhovna Rada's estimate for 2021. Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko says the 2021 national budget provides for 26% and 30% increases in salaries of educators and healthcare workers, respectively.

Zelensky voices demands to Ukrainian ambassadors

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