The Ukrainian economy and business should shape the vision of Ukraine’s integration into the EU market.

Olha Stefanyshyna: The Ukrainian economy and business should shape the vision of Ukraine’s future integration into the European Union market. This was stated by the Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine, Olha Stefanyshyna, during her speech at the 2024 Exporters Summit “Made in Ukraine,” organized by Forbes Ukraine.

During the discussion, the main achievements of Ukraine on the path of European integration over the past year were discussed.

“I am proud to say that European integration is proceeding according to plan. Despite all the turbulence, the ambitious goals that I mentioned last year – we have achieved them. Firstly, a decision was made to open negotiations on Ukraine’s EU membership. Today, the first stage has already begun, which involves screening our legislation for compliance with European standards, and in fact, we expect the opening of the first negotiation chapters in June,” said Olha Stefanyshyna.

According to the Vice Prime Minister, since the decision by European leaders to open negotiations on accession, the Ukrainian side has been able to fully structure the negotiation process.

“Now, it is important for businesses to take a proactive stance, particularly at the EU level; the driver of the negotiating position should be the Ukrainian economy, Ukrainian entrepreneurs. Your future is in your hands. Either you completely delegate responsibility to the government, or you provide us with your vision of how to protect Ukrainian producers, national production, and enhance its capabilities through the conditions that will be set in future negotiations. We guarantee the openness of this process from our side. From your side – proposals,” she emphasized.

Commenting on the situation in the agrarian sector, particularly in the context of contentious issues and the blockade of the border with Poland, Olha Stefanyshyna emphasized the importance of dialogue between the parties, including at the level of agrarian associations.

“Such a dialogue would be very helpful to both the Ukrainian and Polish governments because, in reality, we are friendly countries, Poland supports Ukraine on many issues, but negotiating such things at the highest political level is more difficult. Therefore, ‘business to business’ dialogue is critically important,” stressed the government official.

In the context of the future transition of the Ukrainian economy to European regulations, she emphasized that it would be strategically advantageous for companies to operate in the “white business” sector.

“A regulation creating the Ukraine Facility was adopted by the EU, which provides for the approval of Ukraine’s plan. It includes an investment component, priority areas: energy, transport, IT, logistics, agriculture. These are areas where investment through European financial institutions will be prioritized. New opportunities will be opened, but at the same time, this will require a transition to European standards,” she added.

Responding to questions about strengthening the security component, the Vice Prime Minister reminded that Ukraine has already signed a number of security agreements with key allied countries.

“This means that these countries will be with us for the next decade, and they will do everything possible to help us.”