Ukraine passes EU screening for free movement of goods

Ukraine has completed the official screening of its legislation’s compliance with EU standards under the Free Movement of Goods negotiating section. This is stated in the report of the Ministry of Economy.

Preparations for the screening lasted six months and included interaction between government agencies, structural units of the Ministry of Economy and the Government Office for Coordination of European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine.

According to Deputy Minister of Economy Vitaliy Kindrativ, free movement of goods is one of the key freedoms of the EU single market, which allows to eliminate technical barriers to trade between member states. During the screening, Ukraine presented more than 44 presentations to the European Commission on 59 acts of EU legislation regulating industrial products.

“The European side highly appreciated our progress in harmonizing regulations and fulfilling our obligations under the Association Agreement,” said Kindrativ.

According to him, in the future, the implementation of this section will allow exporting Ukrainian products to the EU market. By becoming a member of the bloc, Ukraine will be part of a single market with the same rules for all member states.

“The answers to the questions provided, as well as additional explanations provided during the screening, will provide EU members with the necessary information about the opportunities and benefits of cooperation with Ukraine,” the deputy minister said.

Kindrativ added that harmonization of technical requirements in all sectors, especially in high-risk areas, is crucial to eliminate barriers that may impede the free movement of goods.

Ukraine intends to increase its exports to $77 billion over the next five years. This was stated by Taras Kachka, Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade Representative of Ukraine, during the International Trade Forum in Kyiv. The government is currently working on updating the national Export Strategy.