Ukraine's western regions should become a drive for economic integration with the European Union amid preparations for signing the Association Agreement, according to Ukrainian Income and Tax Minister Oleksandr Klymenko.
While meeting with investors who want to invest in the country’s west on Oct. 4, the minister pointed to the more active development of entrepreneurship in that part of Ukraine, the ministry’s press service said on Friday. As he put it, the three regions – Zakarpattia, Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv ones – have almost 78,000 companies whose majority was set up with foreign capital.
Investors from 51 countries work in Zakarpattia region alone, he added.
“Out of all Ukrainian regions, these are the western ones, mainly Zakarpattia, that can boast experience in long-term cross-border cooperation with the European Union countries. Local businesses actively use such a competitive advantage as the border with the EU. A certain merger of Ukraine’s economy with the EU member countries’ economy is unavoidable when there is a free trade area. The [country’s] western region is the only part where this process has been happening for objective reasons. Now your experience will be of use for businessmen from the rest of the country,” he said.
According to Klymenko, Hr 2.5 billion in VAT refunds to companies located in Zakarpattia, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Lviv regions had been paid as of Oct. 1, 2013, with the Hr1.48 billion submitted for reimbursement. Automatic VAT refunds under the liberalized procedures accounted for 35.3% of the total refunded sum.
The minister also assured businesses that proper conditions were being created to boost the cross-border cooperation with the EU along with the liberalization of customs procedures for commodities and people crossing the border.
