EU - Ukraine relations in agriculture: stormy weather ahead?

Ukrainian Agribusiness Club together with UCABevent agency organizes an online “fireside chat” discussion  “EU - Ukraine relations in agriculture: stormy weather ahead?”.

• February 23, 2024 (Friday)
• 11:00 - 12:30 (Kyiv time)/10:00-11:30 (CET  time)
• English

Access is free of charge: https://forms.gle/joCadryMooj848G88

Agenda

11:00 - 11:15
Kick-off remarks
Alex Lissitsa, President of UCAB  

11:15 - 12:00 Panel Discussion
Moderator: Nazar Bobitski, Head of the UCAB EU office

Panelists

• Taras Kachka, Deputy Minister of Economy / Ukraine’s Trade Representative (tbc)
• Taras Vysotskiy, the First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine
• Alex Lissitsa, Founder and President, UCAB
• Heinz Strubenhoff, adviser to KfW, European Commission, German Government
• Aivaras Abromavicius, Chairman, Agroregion (tbc)
• Oleg Nivievskyi, Director, Kyiv School of Economics
• Clément Coussens, CEO of Agro KMR (tbc)

12:00 - 12:20 - Q&As from online audience.

12:20 - 12:30 - Alex Lissitsa, President of UCAB, concluding remarks.

Context

As Ukrainian agrifood exports generate over 60% of the country’s currency revenues, the threat of new restrictions for the Ukrainian agricultural products becomes the matter of life and death for Ukraine’s macroeconomic stability. The EU accounts for more than half of Ukraine’s shipment of agrifood products, hence any policy decisions affecting EU Ukraine agrifood trade will have direct and profound impact on the country’s economy. Moreover, they may set a negative background in the longer term for Ukraine’s relations with its EU neighbours and for negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the EU. 

This fireside chat discussion seeks to shed light on the situation on the ground with Ukrainian agrifood exports to the EU countries, impact on Ukraine and EU markets, the way out by means of adjusting the existing EU trade preferences for Ukraine and the longer term implications for integration of Ukraine’s agricultural sector to the EU, particularly in the context of the (reformed) EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). 

Discussion questions:

1. Do Ukraine’s imports of agricultural commodities (sugar, eggs, poultry, cereals, oilseeds) destabilize the European market? Will import bans or quotas be able to help European producers?
2. What is the likely economic impact of EU’s trade restrictions on the Ukrainian agricultural sector and the Ukrainian economy?
3. Can the EU and Ukraine find a way forward in terms of trade policy? Can the existing trade preferences be finetuned to strike a compromise between Ukrainian and European agricultural producers? 
4. Is the Ukrainian agricultural sector a long-term threat for the European agri producers as Ukraine is preparing for EU accession? Can the Common Agricultural Policy be adapted to help meet possible challenges while unlocking new opportunities for productivity, growth and stronger EU role in the world as agrifood superpower?