EU and Ukraine reaffirm their close and comprehensive partnership
At the EU-Ukraine Association Council both sides reaffirmed
their close and comprehensive partnership. In the margins, several
agreements were signed, demonstrating the EU's ongoing
commitment to Ukraine and its
reform efforts.
The European Union and Ukraine
held the third meeting of the Association
Council on 19 December 2016 in Brussels, one month
after a successful 18th
EU-Ukraine Summit and a week after the
EU released a joint report examining the state of play
of Ukraine's implementation of its Association Agenda since 1 January 2015.
The Association Council reaffirmed the close and comprehensive partnership between the EU and Ukraine,
based on common values of
democracy, rule of law and
human rights. It reaffirmed the
continuing commitment to political association
and economic integration between the EU and Ukraine.
Read the full press release on the outcome
of the Association
Council.
In the margins of the
Association Council the European Commission
and Ukraine signed the following agreements:
Agreement supporting Ukraine's public administration reform which is worth
€104 million and is one component
of a larger package totalling €300 million of EU support
for accountable and transparent governance in Ukraine;
A series of cross-border cooperation agreements, confirming Ukraine's participation in EU-funded programmes involving Romania; Poland and Belarus;
Hungary, Slovakia and Romania, and
the Black Sea region. These
programmes will promote continued economic and social
development in regions on both
sides of common borders and addressing common challenges in a range of
priority areas, as well as
to ensure efficient and secure
borders;
The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Ukraine signed
the latest set of loans,
totalling approximately
€600 million and underpinned partly by EU grants, in
the total €3 billion financial assistance programme for 2014-2016. This is part of
the €11 billion EU support package announced by the
EU in March 2014, and demonstrates the EU's commitment
to helping Ukraine stabilise its economic and
financial situation, increase resilience, and act as
a catalyst for prosperity for the citizens of
Ukraine. More information here.
European Commission: http://ec.europa.eu/news/2016/12/20161219_en.htm