HAVANA, October 23 (Itar-Tass) —— The agreement on a free trade zone with the CIS countries, which Ukraine has signed, was a result of a long-term joint work and became a long-expected result, Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovich told reporters.
The document “does not provide any obstacles for Ukraine’s European integration,” he said.
“All integration processes which we are solving now do not mean to make friends against somebody,” Yanukovich continued. The situation with the world economic crisis requires from Ukraine an “active position” on integration of its economy in the world’s one. These processes first of all are aimed at “removing barriers from the ways of goods, finances, services and labour force.”
“We must offer instruments to resist crisis phenomena, which exist in the world now, and to protect our economy,” he said. “There is no other way, and any politicisation of the process only harms it.”
Ukraine’s foreign policy follows “pragmatic approach to solving economic questions, economisation of our international economic relations with many world centres of development,” and it “will always be aimed at protection of our national interests,” Yanukovich said.