Brussels, 21/04/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 21 April, European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn stated that it was important for the new Ukrainian government to show its resolve to make reforms in the first 100 days of its mandate.
Hahn said that although the first 100 days of a government's mandate are traditionally “a rest period”, this is not case same when it comes to Ukraine. “It is important that the new government take a lot of measures in the first 100 days to demonstrate its will to continue the reform activities and efforts shown in the past and definitively necessary for the future”, he said at a press conference. He also said that the EU-Ukraine summit on 19 May will be an “excellent opportunity” for the Ukrainians to show what has already been done or is in the process of being done.
Hahn then set out the efforts needed. The government must work on continuing the fight against corruption (which is also linked to the liberalisation of visas) and it must work on continuing the reform of public services. He added that the government must support small and medium-sized companies, especially through a better business climate and progress on removing phytosanitary barriers. Hahn called on the government to take the necessary economic measures and re-engage in discussions with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He stated that the EU was ready to release a second tranche of €600 million macro-financial aid when the necessary conditions have been fulfilled. It is important for the new government to reassure the international community that it will not renegotiate on what has already been the subject of an agreement - be it with the IMF or the EU - and for it to continue to implement what has been decided, Hahn stated.
In addition, he underlined that implementing the Minsk agreements was “crucial” and required urgent action.
Elsewhere, when asked about the consequences of the Dutch referendum rejecting the EU-Ukraine association agreement, Hahn said that the agreement was already being applied provisionally. “For the moment, we can work with the provisional situation and we will continue what we have already committed to”, he said. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)