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Ukraine set to sign association agreement with EU in November

According to the Ukrainian prime minister Nikolai Azarov, most of European countries understand the importance of Ukraine’s geostrategic position

KIEV, June 17 (Itar-Tass) - Ukraine plans to sign an association agreement with the European Union in November, the press service of Ukrainian Prime Minister Nikolai Azarov quoted him as saying on Monday.

“The agreement will be signed first of all because it has a commercial nature,” Azarov said in an interview with France’s Le Figaro ahead of his two-day visit to France beginning on Monday.

According to the Ukrainian prime minister, the majority of European countries understand the importance of Ukraine’s geostrategic position, they also are aware that its eastern partners offer Kiev to join the Customs Union of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. “In any case, we will strengthen our relations with them, since they account for 40 percent of our trade. We shall never reject such perspectives,” he stressed.

Touching on the issue of the release from prison the country’s former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko as a prerequisite for the signing of the association agreement with the European Union, Azarov said, “Ukraine is against any dictating to it. All attempts at dictating are doomed to failure.” “They give us advice, they listen to us, we are maintaining a dialogue, but I would not link the European integration with Tymoshenko’s future. At meetings with European ledares, this subject is at the bottom of the agenda, and I would not like waste time answering questions about this woman,” he added.

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