(1)

The Association Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community and their Member States, of the one part, and Ukraine, of the other part (2) (the ‘Association Agreement’) constitutes the basis of the relationship between the Union and Ukraine. In accordance with Council Decision 2014/668/EU (3), Title IV of the Association Agreement, which relates to trade and trade-related matters, applied provisionally from 1 January 2016, and entered into force on 1 September 2017, following ratification by all Member States.

(2)

The Association Agreement expresses the desire of the Parties to the Association Agreement (the ‘Parties’) to strengthen and widen relations in an ambitious and innovative way, to facilitate and achieve gradual economic integration, and to do so in compliance with the rights and obligations arising out of the World Trade Organization membership of the Parties.

(3)

Article 25 of the Association Agreement provides for the progressive establishment of a free trade area between the Parties in accordance with Article XXIV of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT 1994). To that end, Article 29 of the Association Agreement provides for the progressive elimination of customs duties in accordance with the Schedules included therein and for the possibility of accelerating and broadening the scope of such elimination.

(4)

Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified war of aggression against Ukraine since 24 February 2022 has had a profoundly negative impact on the ability of Ukraine to trade with the rest of the world, both because of the destruction of production capacity and the unavailability of a significant proportion of means of transport due to, for example, the restriction and uncertainty of access to the Black Sea. Under such exceptional circumstances and to mitigate the negative economic impact of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, it is necessary to accelerate the development of closer economic relations between the Union and Ukraine in order to provide continued support to the Ukrainian authorities and population. It is therefore necessary and appropriate to continue stimulating trade flows and granting concessions in the form of trade-liberalisation measures for all products, in line with the acceleration of the elimination of customs duties on trade between the Union and Ukraine.

(5)

In accordance with Article 21(3) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU), the Union is to ensure consistency between the different areas of its external action. Pursuant to Article 207(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), the common commercial policy is to be conducted in the context of the principles and objectives of the Union’s external action.

(6)

Regulation (EU) 2023/1077 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4) expires on 5 June 2024.

(7)

The temporary trade-liberalisation measures established by this Regulation should take the following form: (i) the suspension of the application of the entry price system to fruit and vegetables; (ii) the suspension of tariff-rate quotas and import duties; and (iii) the suspension of the application of Chapter V and Article 24 of Regulation (EU) 2015/478 of the European Parliament and of the Council (5). Through those measures, the Union will, in effect, temporarily provide appropriate economic and financial support to the benefit of Ukraine and the economic operators that are affected.

(8)

In order to prevent fraud, the preferential arrangements established by this Regulation should be conditional upon Ukraine complying with all the relevant conditions for obtaining benefits under the Association Agreement, including the rules of origin of products concerned and the procedures related thereto, as well as Ukraine’s involvement in close administrative cooperation with the Union, as provided for by the Association Agreement.

(9)

The preferential arrangements established by this Regulation should also be conditional upon Ukraine abstaining from introducing new duties or charges having equivalent effect and new quantitative restrictions or measures having equivalent effect, from increasing existing levels of duties or charges, or from introducing any other restrictions on trade with the Union, unless clearly justified in the context of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.

(10)

The preferential arrangements established by this Regulation should also be conditional upon Ukraine’s continued respect for the general principles of the Association Agreement. In this regard, Article 2 of the Association Agreement provides, among other things, that respect for democratic principles, human rights and fundamental freedoms, the promotion of respect for the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity, inviolability of borders, and independence as well as countering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, related materials and their means of delivery constitute essential elements of the Association Agreement. Furthermore, Article 3 of the Association Agreement states that the rule of law, good governance, the fight against corruption, the fight against the different forms of trans-national organised crime and terrorism, the promotion of sustainable development and effective multilateralism are central to enhancing the relationship between the Parties.

(11)

Subject to an assessment by the Commission carried out in the context of the regular monitoring of the impact of this Regulation and launched either following a duly substantiated request from a Member State or on the Commission’s own initiative, it is necessary to provide for the possibility to take any necessary measures regarding imports of any products falling under the scope of this Regulation, for instance wheat and other cereals, which are adversely affecting the Union market or the market of one or several Member States for like or directly competing products. There is a particularly precarious situation in the markets for eggs, poultry, sugar, oats, maize, groats and honey that can harm Union agricultural producers if imports from Ukraine were to increase. It is appropriate to introduce an automatic safeguard for those products that is activated if the cumulative import volumes of any of those products in a specific period reach a certain level based on the arithmetic mean of import volumes recorded in the period from 1 July to 31 December 2021, in 2022 and in 2023.

(12)

Imports from Ukraine, including cereals and oilseeds, can be made subject to surveillance under Chapter IV of Regulation (EU) 2015/478, which includes the option to require the production of a surveillance document as a condition for free circulation (import licensing), if the trend in imports threatens to cause injury to Union producers and if the interests of the Union so require.

(13)

In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to temporarily suspend the preferential arrangements provided in Article 1(1) if the conditions for entitlement to those preferential arrangements are no longer complied with and to introduce safeguards in cases where the Union market or the market of one or several Member States for like or directly competing products are adversely affected by imports under this Regulation. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council (6). The advisory procedure provided for in that Regulation should be used for the adoption of provisional safeguard measures, given the effects and nature of those measures and their sequential logic in relation to the adoption of definitive safeguard measures. In addition, that advisory procedure should be used for the adoption of arrangements to monitor the import volumes of eggs, poultry, sugar, oats, maize, groats and honey from Ukraine to guarantee the effective functioning of the automatic safeguard.

(14)

The Commission’s annual report on the implementation of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, which is an integral part of the Association Agreement, should include a detailed assessment of the implementation of the trade-liberalisation measures established by this Regulation.

(15)

In light of the expiry of Regulation (EU) 2023/1077 on 5 June 2024, this Regulation should enter into force on 6 June 2024,

(a)

compliance by Ukraine with the rules of origin of products and the procedures related thereto as provided for in the Association Agreement;

(b)

Ukraine’s abstention from introducing new duties or charges having equivalent effect and new quantitative restrictions or measures having equivalent effect for imports originating in the Union, from increasing existing levels of duties or charges, or from introducing any other restrictions on trade with the Union, including discriminatory internal administrative measures, unless clearly justified in the war context; and

(c)

Ukraine’s respect for democratic principles, human rights and fundamental freedoms and respect for the principle of the rule of law as well as continued and sustained efforts with regard to the fight against corruption, and illegal activities provided for in Articles 2, 3 and 22 of the Association Agreement.