14 Mar 2013 10:36

Text of EU-Ukraine association agreement could be sent to EU Council in spring - European commissioner

BRUSSELS. March 14 (Interfax) - The text of an association agreement between Ukraine and the European Union could be forwarded to the EU Council in early spring this year, European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy Stefan Fuele said at a European Parliament plenary session in Strasbourg on Wednesday.

Fuele said the European Commission is working on the text, and he expects that it could be sent to the Council in early spring along with a relevant inquiry and recommendations.

Fuele underscored the document's importance, saying that it does not only concern a free trade area and is not only a geostrategic agreement. As concerns Ukraine, this agreement is not only about political association but is also about economic integration, which would bring Ukraine closer to the EU and make Ukraine gradually integrated with the EU market, he said.