Ukraine and UAE plan to conclude bilateral trade agreement
The United Arab Emirates and Ukraine have announced their intention to start negotiations on a bilateral trade agreement, which is expected to be concluded by the middle of next year.
This is reported by Censor.NET with reference to Reuters.
The Minister of Foreign Trade of the UAE, Thani Al-Zeyoudi, and the Minister of Economy of Ukraine, Yulia Svyridenko, signed a joint statement on negotiations on the conclusion of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on December 5, the Ministry of Economy of the UAE reported.
This will be the UAE's first such agreement with Ukraine, following more than $3 billion in trade and investment commitments made during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's visit to the Gulf state in February 2021.
"Ukraine is a key trading partner for us. Growth and investment potential were high before the whole geopolitical situation; we think it's time to move forward," said UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani Al-Zeyoudi.
According to the UAE Ministry, oil trade between the UAE and Ukraine in 2021 was slightly more than $900 million, which is almost 29% more than last year.
The talks are likely to focus on opportunities to expand trade in services and food security, where the UAE acts as a trading hub. Ukraine is a major supplier of grain to the Middle East.
The statement of the ministry says that CEPA with Ukraine will open access to new markets in Asia, Africa and the Middle East for Ukrainian agricultural and industrial products.
"This will bring additional benefits not only to the UAE but also to Ukraine," Al-Zeyoudi said.
