European Union suspends customs duties and quotas on Ukrainian products

The European Union will suspend customs duties and quotas on Ukrainian products

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Brussels is also actively helping to deliver goods produced in Ukraine, especially agricultural products, to recipients in other countries, simplifying the requirements for Ukrainian long-distance travelers.

The temporary abolition of all customs duties and quotas will help at least some Ukrainian producers to earn extra income. This is important because Ukraine is in dire need of funds at the moment.

EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis explained that the Ukrainian government had asked for this to be done. A free trade agreement has been in place between Ukraine and the European Union since 2016, helping to double trade. However, the current war is seriously hampering both the production and supply of goods.

Dombrovskis pointed out that such measures have not been implemented in the European Union before and their scale is unprecedented. He emphasized that since the beginning of Russia’s aggression, the European Union had made it a priority to sustain Ukraine’s economy, as it was essential to help it win the war and to help the country recover once the war was over.

He emphasized that these measures would directly help Ukrainian producers and exporters, and would send a strong signal that the European Union would do its utmost to help Ukraine at a time when it needed help.

CONTEXT:

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered to start Russian troops invade Ukraine. Putin claimed that NATO was going to use Ukraine as a bridgehead for aggression against Russia, although there was no evidence of these allegations. Ukraine believes that Putin’s real goal is to destroy Ukraine’s statehood and bring the territory under Moscow’s control.

Russia hoped to occupy Kiev and other major Ukrainian cities within a few days, but the Ukrainian armed forces showed fierce resistance to the occupiers and Russia has failed to meet its targets. Russian occupation forces continue to fire on Ukrainian cities, causing increasing civilian casualties.

In early April, the international community was shocked by news from the Kiev region of the city of Bucca, where Russian troops brutally retaliated against the civilian population. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has described it as a war crime and genocide against the Ukrainian people.

Around 5 million refugees have fled Ukraine since the start of the war.

Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has provoked a general one condemnation of the international communityagainst Russia is new sanctions have been introduced. Many Western companies have decided to leave the Russian market.

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