Ukraine needs Russia as a trade partner, Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko said in an interview with the Swiss newspaper Neue Zuercher Zeitung.
According to the head of the Ukrainian Ministry of Finance, the trade turnover with Russia will never be as big as it was before the crisis. But Russia still remains an important economic partner for Ukraine, she said.
Jaresko also stated that no one is interested in reducing investments and trade flows between the two countries. The basis for the bilateral partnership should be free competition and clear rules, including the mediation of emerging conflicts by the World Trade Organization, she noted.
According to the Ukrainian State Statistics Service, Russia still remains the largest trading partner of Ukraine, despite the fact that trade turnover between the two countries dramatically fell by 43 percent compared with the last year.