The U.S. and Ukraine have announced the launch of negotiations to upgrade their 2008 Trade and Investment Cooperation Agreement.
According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, this initiative aims to “support Ukraine’s efforts to establish a more transparent and predictable business environment.” Doing so will help “create an environment that encourages companies and individuals to live, work, and invest in Ukraine,” which USTR said will be an important part of laying “the foundation for a sustainable economic recovery and long-term reconstruction” in Ukraine following the destruction caused by Russia’s invasion.
Toward that end, an article in The Odessa Journal said, a Nov. 9 meeting of the U.S.-Ukraine Trade and Investment Council discussed issues “from judicial reform, privatization and public procurement to technical regulation, intellectual property and veterinary matters,” with particular emphasis on labor reform. Economic minister Yuliia Svyrydenko added that Ukraine anticipates negotiating “a number of protocols” to supplement the TICA in order to “provide all the necessary guarantees for business regarding non-tariff measures, such as the regulatory framework of procurement procedures.”
USTR noted that trade between the U.S. and Ukraine totaled approximately $4.4 billion in 2021, with U.S. goods exports to Ukraine of $2.5 billion and goods imports from Ukraine of $1.9 billion.
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