STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE VIKTOR YUSCHENKO
Esteemed Azerbaijani friends, ladies and gentlemen
First of all, I would like to thank the President for the invitation. I am satisfied with the talks we have had in the spirit of traditional friendship. The subject-matter was wide-ranging – we touched on the issues concerning various aspects of our relations including political, economic, humanitarian, defense and foreign policy ones. Besides, we discussed our military-technical cooperation, and realization of a number of energy projects.
I would like to mention that today Ukraine has reached the stage of political stability. Political forces that that were involved in the parliamentary elections have passed through the difficult path towards forming parliament’s majority, forming the government, forming major view on nationwide values, integration vector and attitude to the key issues that has bothered the nation for many years.
It is with great satisfaction that I want to say that today Ukraine is on the stage of political stabilization. It is very important from the standpoint of the issues we have discussed to understand economic prospects of their realization.
Evaluating the today’s Ukrainian market, macroeconomic culture and other indicators, I would like to say that our indicators we have are may be unique for the Eastern Europe. Our GDP’s growth rate is 7.7%. All the branches of the economy tend to grow. None of our branches is experiencing depression, slowdown or crisis.
Today, the country has the least, over the past 15 years of independence, level of unemployment measuring 7.2%. We have the highest indicator of per year foreign investments, which measures $7.4 billion. The dynamics of our budget’s forming is very good with 53% growth in budget receipts last year. This year, this growth makes up 18%. We have managed to tackle greater part of the social and humanitarian issues that we failed to do for many years.
I consider it as a good basis for development of multilateral and bilateral relations with Ukraine. Ukraine is a promising country. I am convinced that Ukraine has many opportunities for the mutual interests to be satisfied. That is why it was so important to us to discuss a number of issues of traditional significance for our relations. The first group of issues constitutes cooperation in energy sphere. There are three directions in energy sphere, which Ukraine is interested in today. The first is forming joint structures with potential Azerbaijani companies to deal in both markets with extraction, exploration, processing and sale of oil products. Such readiness have been expressed by Ukrainian side, and officially submitted to the Azerbaijani colleagues.
We consider this as the first stage of them mutual penetration to markets and development of mutual potentials. The second step is continuation of the transportation of the Azeri and Kazakh oil through Odessa-Brody-European market route. The project is currently working. Today, the Caspian and Black Sea region is already making new offers concerning crude oil that easily agrees with realization of the Odessa-Brody project. The third step is forming joint positions on such important issue as supply of gas, practically, though the same route – the Caspian region-Ukraine-European Union.
We are very interested in continuation and development of cooperation in aviation. Today, Ukraine can present seven types of aircrafts, which have been tasted, and meet the highest safety requirement and economic characteristics of the contemporary aviation market.
We believe here is our perspective. Our offer today is that we have to study this issue on the highest possible level, highlight key points and continue our work.
We have paid great attention to the activity of GUAM, we have also focused on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, concerning which Ukraine, as before, use all available opportunities to help in resolution of this conflict. We are ready to be a party to play the part, which could be most acceptable for the conflict sides.
We talked about providing vital conditions for national minorities. It pleases me much, as the President, that the Azerbaijani community of Ukraine feels fine. If there are problems we have not yet solved, we are ready to do so at a highest level.
Frankly speaking, our negotiations were very easy because, on one hand, our relations are historically and traditionally good, and have been formed and enshrined in the two peoples at both conscious and subconscious level. On the other one, I think the policy of the last years is the policy, which have demonstrated careful attitude to national interests of the countries. Ukraine is ready to continue this policy.
We are very pleased with the last years’ dynamics of our trade relations: 37% growth last year, and nearly 30% this year. It proves the effectiveness of the mechanism of organization of the trade relations between the two countries in the framework of GUAM. The free trade zone produces its regular results. However, we were ready to sit down at the negotiating table to tackle the problems if they exist and are worthy of attention of the working commissions or the Presidents.
No matter do these issues concern tariff policy or insurance, something else, we realize that these relations need to be perfected. So, both sides agreed, after all, to raise the status of our relations and create a new constitutional mechanism in the form of the Council of the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Ukraine. In the framework of the Council, a strategic plan will be developed to cover the most important aspects of the bilateral relations. Relevant orders have been given today by the Presidents. I am convinced that our relations are not only mutually beneficial but also very promising. So, I thank you, Ilham Heydarovich, for the atmosphere our talks, and those of the two government teams were held.
Thank you.
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