EU, Ukraine extend road transport agreement for one more year

Ukraine and the European Union have extended their Road Transport Agreement for one more year with the possibility of its extension.

That's according to the press service of the Ministry for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine, Ukrinform reports.

"On June 20, in Brussels, Deputy Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development Serhiy Derkach and EU Commissioner for Transport Adina Valean signed the extension of the road freight transport liberalization agreement between Ukraine and the EU," the report reads.

The agreement will be valid for at least one year with the possibility of its automatic extension until the end of 2025.

In addition to extending the agreement, the updated document provides for a number of obligations for both Ukrainian and European transport operators.

In particular, all drivers will be obliged to have documents confirming the availability of a transport license. In addition, all trucks carrying out transportation in accordance with the terms of the agreement must be marked accordingly.

Another innovation is the availability of supporting documents for empty trucks leaving Ukraine for the EU.

The document also mentions the creation of a special working group to analyze the impact of the agreement liberalizing road freight transport on the market. It will include representatives of Ukraine and the EU.

According to Derkach, this agreement is important not only for Ukraine, and the document also has a positive impact on the EU market, which can be confirmed by numbers.

"For example, if we compare last year with 2021, imports from the EU to Ukraine increased by more than 45%. It was possible to increase the export of domestic goods by 45% by road," he said.

The European Union signed the Road Transport Agreement in June 2022. This helped Ukraine ensure the stability of transportation, given the destruction of logistics routes due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and canceled the need to obtain permits.