1. Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Affairs Yun Kang-hyeon, together with Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade Maksym Nefyodov of Ukraine, held the fourth meeting of the Republic of Korea-Ukraine Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation at the Foreign Ministry on April 24. In the meeting, the two sides reviewed the economic situations and outlooks of the two countries as well as the progress in bilateral economic cooperation on trade, investment, energy and mineral resources, transportation, infrastructure, agriculture, science, technology, information and communications technology (ICT), healthcare, sports and tourism. They also discussed ways to work more closely together in those areas.

※ The ROK-Ukraine Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation was founded pursuant to the bilateral “Trade Agreement” concluded in 1995 and revised in 2008. Its third meeting was held in Kiev in October 2016.

2. Deputy Minister Yun, calling Ukraine the world’s fourth-largest grain exporter located at a strategically advantageous intersection between Europe and Asia, commended the Ukrainian government for achieving an economic recovery since 2016 through reforms across the board, including political affairs and economy. He went on to suggest that the two sides use the Intergovernmental Commission meeting as an opportunity to step up economic cooperation between the two countries.

° Deputy Minister Nefyodov, bringing attention to the Ukrainian government’s efforts to improve the business environment through the “Ukraine 2020 Strategy” for national development, voiced hope that the Intergovernmental Commission meeting would serve as an opportunity to boost bilateral trade and investment and to seek out specific cooperation projects in such sectors as energy, transportation, infrastructure, maritime affairs, agriculture, science and technology.

※ The Ukraine 2020 Strategy, the country’s reform strategy for national development set in November 2014, calls for achieving a sustainable development; ensuring security for the people and country; achieving social justice and fulfilling social responsibility; and increasing Ukraine’s leverage in the international community. Sixty-two programs are under way to those ends.

° The two sides welcomed the visit to the ROK by Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economic Development and Trade Kubiv from April 22 till 25, during which he, together with the ROK Minister of Strategy and Finance, concluded a memorandum of understanding for cooperation on the Knowledge Sharing Program (KSP) and attended a bilateral economic forum.

※ The ROK and Ukraine have conducted three KSPs -- the first in 2008 for mid- to long-term economic development of the two countries; the second in 2009 for improved energy efficiency and the development of new and renewable energy in Ukraine; and the third in 2018, during which the ROK presented to Ukraine a policy suggestion for increased domestic and foreign investment.

※ During his visit to the ROK, Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economic Development and Trade Kubiv held meetings with the Minister of Strategy and Finance and the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Northern Economic Cooperation, and attended the sixth ROK-Ukraine economic forum.

3. The two sides, bringing renewed attention to the fact that the two-way trade volume posted a record-high $2.6 bln in 2008 on the back of the two countries’ mutually complementary industrial and trade structures, agreed to fully use the existing bilateral consultative mechanisms on economy for continued consultations to seek tangible results in areas of great cooperation potential.

※ The ROK-Ukraine trade volume amounted to $2.6 bln in 2008, $1.2 bln in 2009, $1.5 bln in 2010, $1.8 bln in 2011, $1.9 bln in 2012, $1.1 bln in 2013, $1.1 bln in 2014, $900 mln in 2015, $700 mln in 2016 and $780 mln in 2017.

- The ROK’s main exports to Ukraine are railway parts and plastic and steel products, while its key imports from the country are grains, steel and iron ore.

4. The two sides agreed to seek out specific cooperation projects for the diversification of energy sources to include renewable and atomic energy, and in such sectors as aviation industry, transportation, infrastructure, science, technology, and ICT. They also agreed to conclude memoranda of understanding for cooperation on infrastructure, transportation, agriculture, ICT, health and medical care, and the recognition of the certificate of competency.

° The two sides discussed the possibility of broadening the scope of cooperation to include such new areas as maritime affairs, small- and medium-sized enterprises, health and medical care, sports and tourism. They agreed to seek ways to boost trade and investment in agriculture, science, technology and other areas through relevant consultative mechanisms.

* unofficial translation