Ukraine and China are preparing for the third meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Cooperation

Ukraine and China are preparing for the third meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Cooperation. This issue was discussed during the meeting of Vice Prime Minister - Minister of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Utilities of Ukraine Hennadii Zubko with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to Ukraine Zhang Xiyun.

Hennadii Zubko noted that sent a letter to Vice-Premier of the State Council of China Ma Kai with a proposal to the Chinese side to hold the third meeting of the Commission on cooperation between Ukraine and China in September 2015 in Kyiv.

The parties agreed to hold a meeting of the subcommittees on bilateral cooperation in all key areas of trade and economic cooperation, including agriculture and energy, before the third session of the Commission on cooperation between Ukraine and China in September 2015 in Kyiv.

The sides discussed the proposal of China as to the Ukraine’s active participation in joint realization of the Silk Road Economic Belt, an inherent protocol signed by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine and handed over to the Ministry of Commerce of China. "This document will determine the format of Ukraine's participation in different projects and to intensify trade and economic and investment partnership between Ukraine and China," the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine said.

Hennadii Zubko emphasized that Ukraine was interested in strengthening and widening cooperation in agriculture and in trade, as well as economic cooperation. "These issues we can discuss in the framework of subcommittees to work out concrete proposals and projects for cooperation in the third meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission," he said. In addition, issues of cooperation between the two countries in energy, infrastructure sectors and the development of high technology are to be discussed at meetings of the subcommittees.

In his turn, Zhang Xiyun stressed that the Chinese government remains committed to friendship and active cooperation with Ukraine. "We are ready together with the Government of Ukraine to send a message to business in China and Ukraine to work and implement new projects," the Ambassador said.

Zhang Xiyun has noted that in the framework of the Silk Road Economic Belt China plans to attract about USD50 billion of investment. Overall in the next five years, China intends to invest approximately USD500 billion in economies of other countries.

According to him, "China's economy is moving from quantitative to qualitative development." "We plan to invest in new technologies and in this respect there are great prospects for cooperation with Ukraine," Zhang Xiyun stated.

According to the Ambassador, China is ready to actively cooperate and implement projects in the agroindustrial complex of Ukraine: "We are ready to actively take part in the implementation of the national program of agricultural development and are willing to invest in upgrading grain export logistics that will significantly increase the export potential of Ukrainian grain."

The parties agreed that 2015 should be a year of serious work in the development of political dialogue and intensification of trade-economic and investment cooperation.