Commissioner Várhelyi travels to Ukraine on 11-12 February

Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, will travel to Kyiv, Ukraine on 11-12 February as the first Eastern Partnership country. The focus of the visit will be to reiterate continuous EU strong support for Ukraine’s ambitious reform agenda, to discuss the state of reforms and the implementation of the Association Agreement as a follow-up to the European Union-Ukraine Association Council held in Brussels at the end of January. Ahead of the visit, Commissioner Várhelyi said: “Ukraine is not only a close neighbour of the European Union, but it is also a key partner. Ukraine is continuing to make progress with many reforms. But work needs to be continued, especially in the area of the rule of law and fight against corruption – key areas for economic development. The steps taken by Ukraine paved the way to the December 2019 Summit in the framework of the Normandy format, an essential element that the EU supports to contribute to reach a sustainable and peaceful solution to the conflict in eastern Ukraine. During my visit I will discuss the comprehensive EU support, that goes far beyond just financial support and technical assistance. My visit to Ukraine will also feed into our discussions at the upcoming EU Foreign Affairs Council in March.” Commissioner Várhelyi will meet with Mr Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, Dmytro Razumkov, Speaker of Verkhovna Rada, Oleksiy Honcharuk, Prime Minister of Ukraine and members of the Government, including Dmytro Kuleba, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, and Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko. The Commissioner will also meet with the Parliamentary Committee on Integration of Ukraine with the European Union. He will participate in a candle laying ceremony to the Heavenly Hundred Memorial and will meet with representatives of civil society organisations as well as representatives of national minorities. Commissioner Várhelyi will hold a press conference with Prime Minister Honcharuk and sign an agreement for the EU support to E-Governance and Digital Economy. Videos and photos of the visit will be available on EbS.