On the eve of Independence Day, during the visit to Ukraine of the Prime Minister of India H.E. Narendra Modi, a Memorandum was signed between the State Service of Ukraine on Medicines and Drugs Control and the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation under Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare of the Government of India in the presence of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Both sides expressed the desire for broadening cooperation on drugs and pharmaceuticals, including in training and sharing of best practices. They welcomed the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of the Republic of India and the State Service of Ukraine on Medicines and Drugs Control, and the holding of the 3rd Meeting of the Indian-Ukrainian Joint Working Group on Pharmaceutical Cooperation in August 2024 in virtual mode. The Ukrainian side also appreciated India as an assured source for the supply of cost effective and quality medicines. This reads the Joint Statement of Ukraine and India following the visit of the Prime Minister of India to Ukraine.

The regulatory authorities of Ukraine and India have signed a memorandum to join forces to combat low-quality, counterfeit medicines, prevent drug trafficking, and exchange experience and information on quality and safety of medicines and medical devices. It also covers the certification of the production of medicines and medical devices, verification of compliance with GMP and GDP requirements during inspections. The Memorandum establishes a framework for cooperation between the countries in the field of medicines regulation and aims to strengthen cooperation on quality and safety of medicines and harmonisation of standards and procedures for their control.

The signed document envisages strengthening cooperation in the following areas:

- exchange of information on standards, legislation and regulations of the parties in the field of medicines and cosmetics;

- enhancing human resource capacity, including seminars, trainings and research, including comprehensive training in the identified areas;

- exchange of experience, experts, information and methodologies to strengthen capacity in regulatory issues and laboratory testing;

- cooperation in the field of combating low-quality, counterfeit medicines;

- pharmacovigilance, including for medical devices.

We are grateful to India for its support for Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion and fruitful cooperation in the medical field.