The European Union and Ukraine discussed efforts to maintain Ukraine’s exports and imports at the third high-level meeting of the transport dialogue, which took place in Kyiv on Thursday 21 March. Their aim is to improve connectivity, safety and security and sustainability.
“We are in the process of firmly anchoring Ukraine’s transport network into that of the EU, and as a consequence, our commercial exchanges have increased significantly”, emphasised Adina Vălean, the European Commissioner for Transport. “These will be concrete deliverables on Ukraine’s path to EU accession”, she added.
The meeting addressed the need to prioritise transport safety and security by aligning regulations and sharing best practice and expertise. Cooperation on reducing transport emissions and dependence on fossil fuels was also discussed.
The two parties also expressed their intention to continue to work towards Ukraine becoming a full member of the Transport Community Treaty.
Since May 2022, the Solidarity Lanes have enabled Ukraine to export around 126 million tonnes (Mt) of goods, according to data from Ukrainian customs records. It is estimated that the solidarity lanes have enabled the export of around 71 million tonnes of Ukrainian agricultural products and around 55 million tonnes of non-agricultural products.
The total value of trade via solidarity channels since May 2022 is estimated at around €143 billion, with Ukrainian exports worth around €47 billion, including almost €23.5 billion for agricultural products and almost €23.5 billion for non-agricultural products.
47 Mt of goods, such as fuel, vehicles, fertilisers, as well as military and humanitarian aid, have been imported into Ukraine. (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)