You're reading: Poroshenko, Dutch PM have talk ahead of forthcoming referendum on EU-Ukraine Association

President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte had a talk ahead of forthcoming consultative referendum on the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU that will be held in the Netherlands on April 6, 2016.

The president has said he counts on further solidarity and unity of the EU in the issue of support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, reported on the president’s website.

“The parties emphasized the importance of maintaining sanctions against Russia for the non-implementation of the Minsk agreements. The interlocutors also discussed a series of issues of bilateral cooperation, particularly in economic and investment spheres, as well as in the area of technical assistance,” reads the report.

Poroshenko congratulated Rutte with Dutch assuming of the presidency in the Council of the European Union.

In president’s opinion, the DCFTA functioning, the decision by the Council of the European Union on the introduction of the visa-free regime for Ukrainian citizens in 2016 and the entry into full force by the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU are the key issues of the Ukraine-EU agenda in the first half of 2016.

The head of state confirmed the interest of the Ukrainian side in the forthcoming visit of the Dutch business mission headed by the foreign trade minister, as well as in the holding of a large-scale Ukrainian-Dutch business forum in the Netherlands.