On February 21, the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the EU agreed on a mandate to hold negotiations on the continuation of the suspension of the application of tariffs and duties on imports from Ukraine and Moldova. The corresponding message is posted on the official website of the European Council.
“The ambassadors of the EU member states agreed today on the Council’s negotiating mandate on two legislative proposals which aim to renew the suspension of import duties and quotas on Ukrainian and Moldovan exports to the EU for another year,” specified in the message.
The proposal concerning autonomous trade measures for Ukraine aims to renew the suspension of import duties and quotas for another year (from 6 June 2024 to 5 June 2025), “while reinforcing protection for sensitive agricultural products, by beefing up the safeguard measures already included in the current regulation (EU) 2023/1077 and including a new automatic safeguard for certain sensitive products”.
“By renewing these measures, the EU will continue to support and foster the trade flows from Ukraine to the EU and the rest of the world, and will contribute to establishing the conditions for enhanced economic and trade relations leading towards Ukraine’s gradual integration in the EU internal market,” the words of Hadja Lahbib, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Belgium, which currently holds the EU presidency, are quoted in the message.
The next step will be a vote on the proposal by the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade (INTA), which is due to take place at a meeting on 7 March 2024. The European Parliament intends to adopt its position at first reading at one of its plenary sessions in April 2024. The rules should then be adopted by the Council of the EU, signed by representatives of the Council and the European Parliament and published in the Official Journal before entering into force.
