Thanks to unilateral trade preferences introduced by the European Union (EU), exports of Ukrainian products to the EU have considerably grown, Foreign Minister of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin has said.

"We know what the effect from the further application of EU preferences will be: as for statistics, the growth of exports to the EU country actually compensated for the decline in exports to the Customs Union countries. We hope that our joint efforts wit the EU will make the effect larger in the near term and we'll be able to enter the European market in those areas that show small potential now," he said, opening a meeting of the Council of exporters and investors under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kyiv on Tuesday.

Klimkin said that now it is important to focus efforts as Ukrainian exports and trade with the Customs Union countries is falling radically due to restrictions imposed on Ukraine on this market due to the aggressive actions of Russia.

He pointed at the importance of the effective implementations of the Association Agreement with the EU, which was ratified by the Ukrainian parliament.

"I hope that the result of the today's meeting will be an informal action plan," he said, addressing exporters and investors.