DEVELOPMENT OF TRADE AND ECONOMIC COOPERATION BETWEEN UKRAINE AND EU COUNTRIES IN THE CONDITIONS OF NON-PROTECTIONISM

Abstract

The article examines the trends in the development of trade and economic cooperation between Ukraine and EU countries in conditions of non-protectionism. One of the signs of the development of trade and economic cooperation between countries in modern conditions is the use of various types of non-protectionist measures with simultaneous liberalization through the abolition of tariff measures. The European Union is a key trade and economic partner of Ukraine, cooperation with which is of strategic importance for the country and is enshrined in a number of normative legal acts. Over the past years, there has been an increase in the volume of trade between Ukraine and European Union countries, with a simultaneous increase in the share of these countries in Ukraine's foreign trade turnover. The article analyzes the geographical structure of exports and imports of goods, which allowed concluding about the key role of the European Union in Ukraine's foreign trade. The trade balance and the import-export coverage coefficient in trade in goods and services between Ukraine and EU countries have been determined, based on which a trend of import predominance over export during 2009-2022 was identified along with a simultaneous decrease in this difference, which is positive for the Ukrainian economy. In trade in services between Ukraine and EU countries, a positive trade balance has been identified throughout the study period, indicating the effectiveness of trade and economic cooperation. A comparative analysis of the commodity structure of trade in goods before and after Russia's full-scale invasion has been carried out, as a result of which the predominance of raw materials in the export structure of goods and finished products in the import structure of goods has been established, which is a negative sign. In 2022, the share of grain crops increased, while the share of ferrous metals decreased. The dynamics of Ukraine's application of new measures affecting trade in goods with EU countries in 2009-2022, as well as in the opposite direction, have been analyzed, allowing to establish the predominance of protectionist measures over liberalization measures both from Ukraine and from the EU countries.