“We in Ukraine look forward to receiving green light from the European Commission on legal formalization of introduction of visa-free regime for Ukrainian citizens in 2016”, Petro Poroshenko said.
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Relations between Moscow and Kiev plummeted after Ukraine’s pro-Russia president was ousted in 2014 and replaced by the pro-Western Poroshenko, in a year that also saw Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the start of fighting between government troops and pro-Russia rebels in east Ukraine.
“Ukraine is aware of these restrictions and the expected damage the Ukrainian economy”, he said in Brussels following the announcement from Moscow that it would suspend its trade deal with Kiev on January 1.
“I have a feeling that they [Ukraine] will not return anything [to us] because they are crooks”, Medvedev said in an interview with Russian TV channels. “They refuse to return the money and our Western partners not only render us no help, they are actually hindering our efforts”.
“It is crucial for Ukraine’s advancement towards the European Union and Poland is ready to support Ukraine, in particular in sharing its experience in decentralisation”, Duda said.
Duda, on his first official visit to Kiev, added that the implementation of the deal is the first step needed for peace in Ukraine.
The free trade accord suspended by Putin was signed in October 2011 as part of a wider vision in which eastern nations were meant to join forces in a “Eurasian Union” with shared economic and political interests.
Ukraine’s previous president, Viktor Yanukovych, at that time had been pushing for closer integration with the EU.
Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said that once the status of the debt is confirmed, Moscow will hold negotiations with Ukraine on changing the list of commercial creditors, on which Russia was included.
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Ukraine had long lost control of the rigs, but said it would seek compensation from Russian Federation in global courts for its annexed Crimean oil and gas assets.
