<\/p>\n
This was announced by Vladyslav Kryklii, Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine, during a meeting with the European Business Association on March 25.<\/p>\n
The Minister told the business about continued negotiations with the EU on defending the rights of the Ukrainian side in the context of the shortage of international road transport permits<\/strong>. Thus, the Ministry drew the attention of the European Commission to Poland’s unilateral reduction of road transport quotas for Ukrainians. In recent years, Poland has reduced the number of permits for Ukrainian carriers from 200 thousand to 160 thousand, and in 2021 plans another reduction to 140 thousand. However, the Minister assured that this year the reduction of quotas will not happen for any of the countries. He also added the importance of introducing free transit with EU countries without the need for any permits and restrictions.<\/p>\n The business inquired about the current stage of the planned construction of a new cargo terminal of Boryspil International Airport<\/strong>. Thus, the Minister replied that the tender for the selection of a contractor for the construction of the terminal will be held this year.<\/p>\n Also, Mr. Kryklii expressed his skeptical expectations about the pace of recovery of the aviation industry in 2021. Due to the new wave of restrictive measures, there are strong doubts that this year’s air traffic can reach at least 50% of the 2019 volume. However, the Ministry spoke about some initiatives for the development of regional airports. When asked about potential support measures, he mentioned, in particular, the abolition of value-added tax for domestic flights<\/strong>, which will stimulate the development of the aviation industry within the country.<\/p>\n During the discussion, a range of issues was raised regarding the importance of continuing the reform of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia<\/strong>. The Minister emphasized that when creating new verticals of the structure, it is necessary to follow a clearly defined strategy to avoid misunderstandings among the main stakeholders. Besides, the Mininfrastructure managed to involve the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in consultations for more transparency of Ukrzaliznytsia’s unbundling procedure. Business, for its part, outlined that it hopes to continue the reform of railway transport without delay and is ready to cooperate on key reforms.<\/p>\n