Netherlands to Vote on Ukraine–EU Association Agreement in April 2016

Dutch citizens will participate in an advisory referendum on Ukraine's association agreement with the European Union on April 6, 2016, according to local media.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — An advisory referendum on Ukraine's association agreement with the European Union will be held in the Netherlands on April 6, 2016, local media reported Thursday.

Only Dutch citizens will be eligible to vote, the DutchNews reported.

Earlier this month, local media reported that Dutch activists had collected the required amount of signatures on a petition to initiate a national referendum on ratifying a trade zone agreement with Ukraine. The agreement will come into force when Ukraine and all EU member states ratify it.

The Ukraine-EU Association Agreement establishes a political and economic association between the parties. The association deal was signed after what Russia views as a coup-imposed Ukrainian government came to power in 2014.

The agreement specifically seeks to create a trade zone between Ukraine and the 28-nation bloc.

Russia, as Ukraine's biggest trading partner, has repeatedly insisted on being included in the negotiations over Ukraine's EU association, fearing the process could result in an uncontrolled flow of European goods into the Russian market.

Russia’s concerns over the implementation of the agreement led to a postponement of the EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) implementation until January 1, 2016.