11:08 08.01.2018

Britain still sees no capacities for visa liberalization with Ukraine

2 min read
Britain still sees no capacities for visa liberalization with Ukraine

The United Kingdom so far sees no capacities for easing the visa rules with Ukraine in the near future due to the lack of guarantees for protecting the issuance of visas by Ukraine, British Ambassador to Ukraine Judith Gough said.

What is more, this issue is complicated by the recent breach, when the Ukrainian national passport was illegally obtained by a citizen of another country, who has shot at Chechen volunteers Adam Osmayev and Amina Okuyeva who have fought on the Ukrainian side in Donbas (he held a foreign-travel passport of Ukrainian citizen in the name of Oleksandr Dakar), the diplomat said in an interview with the Novoye Vremia publication, excerpts of which were published on Saturday.

Gough said that Britain now expected an appropriate investigation into this violation in order to make sure that the process of issuing visas in Ukraine has been protected and safe. She said that, otherwise, the liberalization already threatened Britain and the safety of its citizens.

Furthermore, the ambassador stressed possible risks for Ukraine due to the pressure on counter-corruption bodies recently becoming tougher. This may seriously harm Ukraine's reputation, she said. Without efficient counter-corruption efforts new investments will not be made to the country, Gough also said.

The ambassador said that a lot of famous British companies, including Land Rover, JCB, Mark & Spencer and many others, which are operating in Ukraine, are constantly saying to her that corruption, a huge number of regulations and high tax rates are obstacles for their expansion in this country.

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