On 1 October this year, Ukraine joined the Common Transit Convention, which was officially celebrated today at an event in Kyiv. This will facilitate the movement of goods between Ukraine and the Convention’s member countries – EU countries, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, the UK, Turkey, Serbia, and North Macedonia. Lithuania has made a significant contribution to Ukraine’s accession.
The political will and interest to join the Convention has been evident in Ukraine for several years, and in 2019, Ukraine adopted national legislation to comply with the Convention. Lithuania played a significant role in the subsequent process as Ukraine looked for ways to introduce a nationwide electronic National Transit Control System (NCTS). The Lithuanian version of this electronic system was donated to Ukraine by the Customs Department of our country. Adapting it to Ukraine’s needs was expected to save time.
The process has been further accelerated by the European Union (EU)-funded programme “Support to Public Financial Management in Ukraine” (EU4PFM), which aims to help Ukraine improve public financial management, ensuring quality public service delivery and an attractive business environment. The programme has a total budget of €50.5 million, of which €0.5 million has been provided by Lithuania. Most of it is implemented by the Central Project Management Agency (CPMA).
“We are pleased to have the opportunity to implement meaningful projects together with other Lithuanian partners and to help Ukraine move towards greater Euro-integration. This is important for us not only in terms of achieving the projects’ objectives, but also in terms of building a stronger bilateral relationship,” says Rasa Suraučienė, Deputy Director of CPMA.
The CPMA is responsible for the implementation of the three components of the programme (€37 million) related to the modernisation of budgetary processes, the development of a modern, efficient and equitable tax collection system, and the strengthening of the organisational capacity of the public finance institutions, in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Lithuania, the Customs Department and the State Tax Inspectorate.
According to Vytenis Ališauskas, EU4PFM expert, the expansion of the Convention participants has a positive impact on Lithuanian businesses. “Although we do not share a common border with Ukraine, those Lithuanian businesses that have trade relations with Ukraine, and we have many of them, will definitely experience simplification. This accession simplifies the procedures for customs control and eliminates many of them,” the expert says.
The fact that Ukraine joined the Common Transit Convention on 1 October this year is, according to V. Ališauskas, like a rehearsal for Ukraine’s accession to the EU. Accession to the Common Transit Convention is only one of the many requirements for EU candidate countries, but, as the expert points out, it is one of the most complex in terms of scope and duration.
