Speech by the Czech Prime Minister Jiří Rusnok at the reception on the occasion of the Independence Day of the Ukraine, Prague, 4. September 2013

Your Excellency, Mr Ambassador,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to thank you for the invitation to this reception. It is an honour and privilege for me to celebrate with you the Independence Day of Ukraine.

I value high level relations existing between our countries and the development of our cooperation in various areas. The will of both sides to develop mutual relations in recent years is demonstrated by the growing intensity of state visits.

Allow me to mention the official visit of the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Mr Mykola Azarov, to the Czech Republic in Decemeber 2011 and upcoming visit of the president of the Czech Republic, Mr Milos Zeman, to Ukraine in October 2013.

I believe, that this visit will give an impetus for the development of our cooperation. Mainly I mean a mutual trade and investment, and its expansion to new areas.

Relations with Ukraine are important not only for the Czech Republic but they are also crucial for the European Union as a whole. In this context, an important milestone will be the Eastern Partnership Summit in Vilnius in November.

I hope that at this summit, the European Union and Ukraine will sign the Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, which have been already initialled.

The Czech Republic strongly supports signing of these documents – it will be an important moment for both the European Union and Ukraine. Nevertheless, at this stage it is necessary for Ukraine to make decisive steps to comply with the criteria.

These agreements will open new perspectives also for the bilateral cooperation between the Czech Republic and Ukraine in the political as well as economic area.

It is my sincere wish that we are able to utilise this opportunity for the benefit of both our countries and their peoples.

Your Excellency, allow me to congratulate you on the Independence Day of Ukraine. Ladies and Gentlemen thank you for your attention and I wish you a pleasant evening.