Ukraine regards the current agreement on steel quotas as a starting point – Politico

Overall, the EU has reached agreements with 13 countries on smaller cuts

Ukraine regards the current quota agreement as a starting point on its path to EU accession. This is reported by Politico.

The country has been allocated an annual quota of 1.05 million tonnes. As the publication notes, this figure is based on a reduction in Ukrainian exports to Europe between 2022 and 2024 – the reference period used to calculate the quotas.

At the same time, in 2025, Ukraine shipped 2.62 million tonnes of steel products to the bloc, and this will lead to a loss of market share for its steelmakers.

MEP Karin Karlsbro – a leading spokesperson on this issue – stated that the published terms had confirmed her worst fears regarding Ukraine.

“This decision will have enormous consequences for the Ukrainian steel industry and the country’s economy, which will ultimately affect Ukraine’s stability and its ability to finance its struggle for survival,” she noted.

Karlsbro plans to discuss this issue with European Commissioner for Trade Maroš Šefčovič.

However, Ukraine will have access to the pool of residual quotas available to countries that have concluded a free trade agreement with the EU, so the final volumes of duty-free exports may be higher.

At the same time, Deputy Prime Minister Taras Kachka noted that Kyiv regards the current agreement as a starting point, and that the final agreement “must take into account Ukraine’s path to EU accession, the logic of deeper economic integration and the prospect of full access to the EU’s internal market”.

According to another senior official, the bloc granted Ukraine certain preferences because the reporting period – which coincided with the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion – could not be adjusted. However, the country was granted some bilateral quotas in categories for which it did not formally meet the requirements, as its share of supplies was below the 5 per cent threshold.

Overall, Politico notes, the EU has offered to cushion the blow for its FTA partners only on condition that they sign an agreement waiving their right to challenge decisions, either bilaterally or within the WTO. Thirteen countries have signed the agreement, and the political formalities are expected to be finalised in the coming months. These partners include Turkey, India, South Korea, Indonesia, Egypt, Brazil, the UK, Switzerland, North Macedonia, South Africa, Argentina, Ukraine and Singapore.

At the same time, the main burden of the cuts will fall on China and other countries, although Brussels denies that the measures are directed against China.

According to EUobserver, China accounted for 9.9 per cent of steel imports into the EU last year; the country does not have a trade agreement with the bloc. The two largest exporters during the period, with shares of 17.2% and 11.5% respectively, were Turkey and South Korea; however, they are included in the list of countries with which agreements have been reached.

It should be recalled that on 30 June, the European Commission published an implementing regulation setting out the allocation of tariff quotas for steel imports amongst the EU’s trading partners.

Half of the annual import quota (18.3 million tonnes) is reserved exclusively for partners under free trade agreements. The remaining 9.15 million tonnes will be available to all trading partners without discrimination, including those with free trade agreements.