Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Maia Sandu discussed prospects of economic cooperation of Ukraine and Moldova

A significant part of negotiations between President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister of Moldova Maia Sandu on July 11 was dedicated to the development of economic cooperation. The negotiations were productive. During a press conference following the negotiations, the President noted: “Special attention was paid to the prospects of economic cooperation. In 2018, trade turnover between our countries had increased by 11% and amounted to almost USD 1 billion. I think we will easily reach the same indicator shortly, but without the word “almost”. 

Separately, the parties discussed the prospects of uniting power systems of Ukraine and Moldova with the power network of the continental Europe, as stated by Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

"I assured the Moldovan side of the reliability of Ukraine as a supplier of electricity to their country," he emphasized.

The parties also discussed human contacts. The President believes that citizens of Ukraine and Moldova can carry out mutual trips with internal ID cards.

"Another issue is the provision of educational needs of the Ukrainian community in Moldova. In my opinion, it is important to keep a differentiated approach to Ukrainian schools and studying the Ukrainian language in Moldova," the Head of State said.

Separately, Volodymyr Zelenskyy raised the issue of extradition of former judge Mykola Chaus to Ukraine. "Our partners promised to facilitate this process," the President said.

The Head of State thanked the Prime Minister of Moldova for her visit to Ukraine and expressed conviction that active dialogue and cooperation in all spheres of mutual interest of the countries would be continued.

According to Maia Sandu, Moldova considers strategic partnership with Ukraine an important foundation of its own security.

"European integration and implementation of the Association Agreement with the European Union are our main goals shared by Ukraine," the Prime Minister of Moldova emphasized.

According to Maia Sandu, the government of Moldova is willing to carry out closer cooperation with Ukraine in economic and energy sectors.

"We are willing to establish a permanent joint control over the border in order to protect our borders from crime and smuggling," the Prime Minister of Moldova said.