PM Yanukovych forecasts Ukraine`s entering WTO by July 2007

Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych is predicting, that Ukraine will enter the WTO by July. Yanukovych told this when speaking to ministers at a lunch, organized by Viktor Pinchuk in frames of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

“I hope, by the mid-year we’ll make this successful finish,” Yanukovych said. Yanukovych underlined the government success in the negotiation process on Ukraine’s accession to the WTO.

“It was my government that has almost completed the process of entering the WTO in three months,” the Premier said.

As the Prime Minister’s press secretary Denys Ivanesku told to reporters, at the Ukrainian delegation meeting with WTO director general Pascal Lami the latter noted Ukraine tops the list 23 countries, nominated for accessing the WTO.

Lami also stressed that the remaining problems are not big ones and they would not delay the process of Ukraine’s entering this organization.

Yanukovych stressed the Ukraine’s unsettled questions remain those of meat import and grain export, subventions to the agricultural-and-industrial complex and Kyrgyz debts.

The Premier said Ukraine performed all the necessary procedures on the meat import issue and informed the United States of that.

As to the grain export, the Premier told the government at its recent session solved almost all the quota problems except those of food grain.

He added, that the question of canceling food grain quotas will be solved after winter, when the state of winter crops will be clear and Ukraine will know, what to expect. “We’ll turn to this question late March-early April,” said the Prime Minister.

Concerning subventions to the agricultural-and-industrial sectors, Yanukovych said that experts were still evaluating Ukrainian subventions for correspondence to the WTO requirements.

The Premier assured, that in case the experts decide the subventions are in line with the WTO requirements, the question would be settled.

As to the debts to Kyrgyzstan, the Premier said Ukraine does not recognize them and that this question does not touch upon the WTO. He informed Lami of this and the latter basically agreed with him but the final decision will be
made at the WTO commission conference.

First deputy head of the Presidential Secretariat, the President’s representative in the Cabinet of Ministers, Arsenii Yatseniuk told Ukrainian News, that the Kyrgyz side received all the bilateral documents for the previous year.

Concerning those clauses, on which Kyrgyzstan claims improper duty payment, Yatseniuk said zero trade showings are stated at them.

In his turn Yanukovych invited Lami to Ukraine to sign an agreement for Ukraine’s accession to the WTO. “I want to invite you to the milestone event – Ukraine’s accession to the WTO, to arrive to Kyiv and sign the agreement on the Ukrainian land,” Ivanesku cited Yanukovych as saying.

Yatseniuk also confirmed to the journalists the outlook of Ukraine’s entry to the WTO by mid-summer. He also added, that most likely it will happen simultaneously with Russia.

As Ukrainian News reported before, the Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych stays with a three-day visit in Switzerland participating the World Economic Forum. The World Economic Forum is held annually in Davos.

Source: Ukrainian News Agency

Date: 29 January 2007

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