BRUSSELS, Feb 11 – The European Union urged Ukraine to step up the fight against corruption and implement other reforms to qualify for continued support from EUR 1.2 billion in macroeconomic assistance package.

Valdis Dombrovskis, Executive Vice President of the European Commission, who met Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal on Wednesday, said the EU stands firmly in support of Ukraine, but decisive action was needed to overcome corruption.

"In my meeting with the Prime Minister, I stressed that the fight against corruption is a key condition for the EU's macro-financial support," Dombrovskis said after the meeting.

The EU has already disbursed the first tranche of EUR 600 million to Ukraine in early December 2020 as a sign of support to Ukraine during the coronavirus pandemic, but will seek further evidence that the government has been committed to fight corruption.

"The EU stands firmly by Ukraine on its reform path, providing unprecedented financial and technical support,” Dombrovskis said. “We stepped up support especially during this crisis, where the EU is showing solidarity with Ukraine during the pandemic."

"The EU has invested heavily in supporting an effective anti-corruption institutional architecture in Ukraine,” he said. “The EU is ready to support Ukraine in doing this. We urge all reform-oriented political factions to come together and give a clear signal of Ukraine's determination to make its reform path irreversible."

He also said that, in addition to the fight against corruption, the allocation of the second tranche will depend on the implementation of measures in various areas that Ukraine has pledged to carry out, as well as on progress with the IMF.

"At our meeting today, we discussed the state of affairs, important reforms, for example, in the justice sector, how to make the anti-corruption infrastructure work and the business climate was improved," the European Commission Vice President said.

Dombrovskis spoke in favor of revising the Agreement on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area as has been requested by Ukraine.

"The Prime Minister and I discussed the implementation of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area [...] We understand that it is also necessary to respect the commitments undertaken under this agreement. We noted Ukraine's interest in trade and economic cooperation, deepening our work in such areas as the digital economy, customs," Dombrovskis said.

"We will discuss the next steps for developing our bilateral relations in the post-pandemic period at this week’s EU-Ukraine Association Council. We will also launch the process for the review of trade liberalization for goods, which is foreseen under Article 29 of the Association Agreement five years after its entry into force," Dombrovskis said. (nr/ez)