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Ukraine’s parliament adopts law imposing 5-10% import tax

The law was adopted by 256 votes versus the 226 votes needed to pass a bill into law

KIEV, December 28. /TASS/. Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada /parliament/ on Sunday passed a law imposing a five to ten percent tax on imported goods. The law was adopted by 256 votes versus the 226 votes needed to pass a bill into law.

Explaining the reason for imposing this tax, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said the country was in “critical situation over the balance of payments” and the law was seen as a way to stabilize it.

The prime minister said the tax would be effective for one year and would not be applicable to a number of goods.

Meanwhile, Yulia Timoshenko, the leader of the Batkivshchina /Fatherland/ faction, said this tax “runs counter to all of our positions at the World Trade Organization /WTO/” and to the Association Agreement with the European Union. She warned that this step might prompt the European Union to cancel the current trade privileges for Kiev.