Ukraine and Italy have agreed to finalize work on an Agreement on the Mutual Protection of Investments

The Ukrainian side called for intensification of work on signing the Agreement on the Protection of Mutual Investments. This and other possible points of interconnection of economic interests of the countries were discussed during the meeting of the First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine - Minister of Economy Oleksiy Lyubchenko with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Italian Republic to Ukraine Pier Francesco Zazo on October 7 in Kyiv.

"Ukraine and Italy have strong trade and economic relations. Among the EU countries, Italy ranks third in terms of trade. Last year it was over $4 billion, according to preliminary forecasts, this year this figure will be surpassed. But we have prospects to improve these positions. One of the tools and an important step can be the signing of an Agreement on the Mutual Protection of Investments. The text of the document is currently being studied by the Italian side, I urge you to intensify this work," Oleksiy Lyubchenko said during the meeting.

The First Deputy Prime Minister also told about the main administrative reforms and sectors of the Ukrainian economy that may be of interest to Italian business circles. "We have launched effective mechanisms and reforms to improve the investment environment, first of all decentralization, land reform, and now we are restarting the privatization process. We also have efficient programs to support investment projects. As for the sectors of the economy in which it is possible to implement joint projects, those include the development of alternative energy sources, gas production, processing of agricultural products, defense industry," Oleksiy Lyubchenko stressed.

For his part, Pier Francesco Zazo noted that promising areas of cooperation for Italian business are the space and defense industries, the introduction of high-speed rail communication, and infrastructure projects. "We are trying to persuade Italian investors to invest in Ukraine. We pass on positive information about the activities of the Ukrainian Government - the successes of decentralization and other reforms. I would like to note that Italian companies that already work in Ukraine feel quite comfortable here," the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Italian Republic to Ukraine emphasized.

The Ukrainian party also raised issues of concern, in particular, the fight against counterfeiting of Italian products and smuggling. "The fight against corruption and the rule of law will be a positive signal for business - it is important to give the investor confidence and a feeling of protection under the law," said Ambassador Pier Francesco Zazo.

Oleksiy Lyubchenko said that the Government had set up and launched an Interdepartmental Working Group on De-Shadowing of the Economy: "The main tasks of the working group are to identify gaps in the legislation that make abuses possible and to eliminate them. We also work on cases where there are violations. In case of receiving signals about violations - please inform us ".

Also during the meeting, the parties agreed to strengthen communication and work to step up trade and economic relations between Ukraine and Italy.