Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych believes that Ukraine should be taking active part in the joint activities of the Commonwealth of Independent States, as this complies with the country's national interests.
"If we are present there (in the CIS), then we should act, and not sit back and do nothing, otherwise why should we be there be in this organization? Do we benefit from it? I tell you we certainly do," the president said in an exclusive interview with 1+1 Channel on Sunday night.
Yanukovych also said that Ukraine needs to improve trade and economic relations with the CIS countries and the commonwealth is a convenient platform for it.
Furthermore, the president noted that Ukraine’s activities within the CIS do not contradict the country’s path towards the membership in the European Union.
"Everything we do within the CIS this does not contradict our European integration path," he said.
At the same time, Yanukovych said that the issue of the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan stands apart. He said this is an interesting issue, but it has not been studied yet.
"We need time to answer this question. When a year and a half, two years pass since the formation of this customs union, and we will see that it is profitable and meets our national interests, we will act," he said.
