"Thanks to the political wisdom of our partners in the Commonwealth and the shared vision of strategic advantages rather than instantaneous profit, we are just about to complete the shaping of a full-scale free trade zone within the CIS, the successful functioning whereof should promote further steady growth of the national economies," the statement reads.
During its chairmanship in the CIS Presidential Council, Ukraine proceeded from the fact that economic cooperation had been singled out by all the member states as the Commonwealth's main area of activity, its top priority and the creation of a free trade zone had been recognized as an objective necessity, Ukrainian officials say in their statement.
One significant step toward translating this approach into reality was the signing, at the CIS' Yalta 2003 summit, of a package of documents that reasserted the supremacy of economic cooperation and set forth specific mid-term goals in the area, officials in Ukraine believe.
In their view, the economic dimension of multilateral cooperation should continue to be viewed as a key element of interaction in the CIS format. The effective development of economic relations between the CIS member nations will be stimulating their cooperation in other areas of mutual interest, Ukraine's statement points out.
