EU: Commission proposes to suspend customs duties on Ukrainian products

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, February 25, 2022. AP - Olivier Hoslet

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This Wednesday, April 27, the European Commission proposed to suspend for one year all customs duties on Ukrainian products imported into the EU.

The objective is to support the economy of the country, attacked by its neighbor Russia.

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" 

An unprecedented gesture of support for a country at war

 ", this is how the European executive qualifies in its press release its proposal to suspend customs duties on Ukrainian products for one year.

The purpose of the operation: to help support exports from Ukraine, and help Ukrainian producers and exporters in difficulty since the beginning of the Russian invasion.

Today we have proposed to suspend import duties on all Ukrainian exports to the EU.



This step will greatly facilitate the export of Ukrainian industrial and agricultural goods to the EU.



We continue to stand by Ukraine in these dire times.#StandWithUkraine

— European Commission 🇪🇺 (@EU_Commission) April 27, 2022

On Monday, London led the way by announcing a similar measure to help Ukraine.

The movement was followed by Europe, and now this proposal must be approved by the European Parliament and the 27 member countries.

Last year, bilateral trade between the EU and Ukraine amounted to 52 billion euros in trade.

But since the start of the conflict with Russia at the end of February, Ukraine's agricultural and industrial production has been severely affected, and its trade relations with the rest of the world largely cut off.

The country's access to the sea, for example, is today blocked by the Russian navy.

Result: Ukrainian GDP is expected to collapse by 35% this year, according to a forecast by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with lasting effects over several years.

© RFI

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