10:33 08.09.2015

Russia, EU give experts until start of October to address Russian concerns over EU-Ukraine association agreement

2 min read
Russia, EU give experts until start of October to address Russian concerns over EU-Ukraine association agreement

Russia and the EU have agreed to give specialists until the beginning of October to address Russia's concerns over the EU-Ukraine association agreement, whose economic provisions take effect on January 1, 2016, Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev told journalists after a meeting with European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmstrom on Monday.

"Today, in the framework of the bilateral meeting with Ms. Malmstrom, we noted the positions that must be covered in the document in the nearest future. If our Ukrainian colleagues support us [at a trilateral meeting to be held later], then before the beginning of October we will give a mandate to the experts, at least on three groups of concerns draw up a documents. Today Ms. Malmstrom confirmed such a mandate," Ulyukayev said.

The document will cover three areas: customs administration, technical regulation and sanitary and phytosanitary.

Ulyukayev pointed out that it was his fourth meeting with the European trade commissioner and that 120 meetings have been held at the expert level.

"Unfortunately, we are unable to boast of any tangible results. But the dialog is proceeding. We are meeting with understanding on a host of positions. The colleagues acknowledge that our concerns connected with customs administration, technical regulation and phytosanitary control are realistic. But unfortunately so far this understanding has not materialized as some kind of agreement," he said.

The Russian side drew up and presented at the previous ministerial meeting a potential draft of the joint documents, "But the work of the experts did not lead to achievement of new agreements. The experts were more likely to cite the large number of disagreements than the large number of common positions." Nonetheless, at the bilateral meeting with Malmstrom, agreement was reached to give the experts until the beginning of October to try and draft a joint document.

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