Kazakhstan-Ukraine: partnership

On March 16, the 1st online meeting of the Kazakh-Ukrainian Business Council was held.

Sergey Svistil, Chairman of Ukrainian Association of exporters and importers "ZED", reported on the existing problems of the development of trade relations between Kazakhstan and Ukraine.

The Association "ZED" analyzed the current situation of bilateral economic partnership. In the interaction between Kazakhstan and Ukraine, there are three main problems: certification, logistics and the use of financial instruments.

"In order for us to move to the practical plane and to revive trade as quickly as possible, first of all it is necessary to address these problems. In terms of certification, we are moving further and further away from each other in terms of building national certification systems. In particular, we are following European certification system, and in the near future we expect to sign an agreement on the recognition of the conformity of Ukrainian goods with the European Union. Many regulations already fully comply with the European regulations, and we are ready to allow companies from Kazakhstan either enter the Ukrainian market through certification... " - Sergey Svistil said.

"...I would also like to draw your attention to the fact that we can use such schemes of mutual cooperation, when we help you enter the European Union market, providing zero duty in the EU, provided that the completion of the goods takes place in Ukraine. We will be able to build such mechanisms when your goods can enter the European Union with a zero duty," he continued.

In turn, speaking at the meeting, Ayan Yerenov,  Chairman of the Board of the Foreign Trade Chamber of Kazakhstan informed the participants that in 2020, the trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Ukraine fell to the lowest levels over the past 10 years. It amounted to about $ 760 mln, which is 32% lower than in 2019. "At the same time, there is an increase in trade in goods from the manufacturing, chemical, and food industries. We see the potential for the supply of Ukrainian goods to Kazakhstan: confectionery, medical products, goods of the machine-building and furniture industries. We see a great potential for the supply of Kazakh products to Ukraine: food, construction materials, manufacturing products and others," he said.

Ayan Yerenov expressed hope that the business council will contribute to the deepening of cooperation between two countries.

Currently, about 1000 companies with the participation of Ukrainian capital are registered in Kazakhstan.