Poroshenko vows to sign remaining part of EU association deal on June 27

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said Thursday he plans to sign the economic part of the EU association agreement on June 27, during the Ukraine-EU summit in Brussels, RIA Novosti reported.

“On June 27 I will sign… the association agreement,” Poroshenko said.

The political provisions of the EU association agreement were signed on March 21, while the signing of the key economic section is slated for June 27.

President Poroshenko said after his inauguration that he was counting on EU membership, and added that the association agreement was a perfect chance for the country to enter the bloc.

Poroshenko said he is ready to sign the economic part of the deal, and stressed the need to introduce a free-trade zone with the bloc starting in January 2015. Estonian President Toomas Ilves, however, said Ukraine’s accession to the EU is impossible in the near future.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that Moscow had no objections to Ukraine’s association agreement with the EU and was not planning to impose any sanctions on Kiev. Russian President Vladimir Putin said, for Ukraine, the association with the EU will be an ordeal, as its goods are unlikely to be competitive on the Russian market.