Will the EU agree to extend its favourable trade terms for Ukraine?

Pieter Cleppe | Issue 7 | Comment, Magazine

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The EU must decide by 5 June whether to extend tariff-free trade with Ukraine. MEPs warn reintroducing duties could undermine support for Kyiv. Internal opposition, especially from farmers, complicates the issue. Brussels is also under fire for using trade policy to impose its regulations on global partners.

Will the EU agree to extend its favourable trade terms for Ukraine?

By 5 June, the European Union must decide whether to extend the favourable trade access currently enjoyed by Ukraine. In a letter to the European Commission on the matter, several MEPs – including Bernd Lange, chair of the Parliament’s international trade committee, and Ukraine rapporteur Karin Karlsbro – warn that reintroducing customs duties on imports from that country “calls into question the EU’s solidarity” at a critical point in the war. They urge the Commission to seek at least “transitional measures” that pave the way for a fully liberalised trade agreement beneficial to both parties.

The current EU–Ukraine trade arrangement, concluded in 2022 after the onset of Russian aggression, removed nearly all EU import tariffs and other trade barriers for Ukraine. A temporary emergency stop mechanism was later introduced for a limited number of agricultural products – including poultry, eggs, honey and sugar – which activates if imports from Ukraine exceed specified thresholds.

For the EU, an extension until the end of the year carries little economic consequence, though it does support European food security. For Ukraine, by contrast, the loss of these privileges could amount to billions of euros in lost revenue. Given that European countries are also supplying military aid to Ukraine, …

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