The association of the European ports opens the doors to the harbour ports of call of Ukraine



The shareholders' meeting of the European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO), met yesterday to Rotterdam, has deliberated the admission of the Ukrainian ports in the European harbour association, with the participation of the Ukrainian Sea Port Authority (USPA) to the work of the ESPO in quality of member observer. To the public authority harbour Ukrainian is under responsibility the 13 situated national marine ports in the continental part of Ukraine on the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and the delta of the Danube: Berdiansk, Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, Chernomorsk, Izmail, Kherson, Mariupol, Mykolaiv, Odessa, Olvia, Rhines, Skadovsk, Ust-Dune and Yuzhnyi.

USPA, as member observer, will have the right to delegate one of own representatives to the shareholders' meeting of the ESPO, being present and to participate to the work of all the technical committees of the association, of to have approached the internal data bank of the ESPO that includes the information on the policies of the EU in the field of the investments and the subsidies and will have also the opportunity to formulate own demands for information through the general secretary of the European association.

Currently ESPO represents the harbour authorities and the harbour administrations of the ports of 23 Member States of the EU and Norway. Moreover they join the association, in quality of members observatories, the Iceland and Israel, to which now Ukraine has come abreast.

Welcoming in ESPO to the USPA as member observer, the president of the association of the European ports, Eamonn O'Reilly, it has evidenced that "the Black Sea constitutes a part a lot important of the European marine Network with the ports members of the ESPO of Rumania and Bulgaria. The agreement of association of Ukraine with the European Union, included the Deep and the Comprehensive Trade Free Area - it has found O'Reilly - returns the ports of Ukraine an important part of the widest European net than transports. The adhesion of the USPA to the ESPO is a logical consequence of the solid relations of Ukraine with the EU. Already optimal relationships of job between the members of ESPO and the Ukrainian ports exist and are pleased to receive the USPA as member observer in our organization that strengthens the presence of ESPO in the Black Sea".

"After to have signed the agreement of association between EU and Ukraine - the managing director of USPA, Raivis Veckagans has explained - we have concentrated ourselves on connectivity of our infrastructures of transport. With the adhesion to the ESPO as observatories, the continuous USPA the governmental efforts faces to establish a mutual favorable cooperation with the European counterparts. We are pleased to join us to the European harbour community and wish to participate actively to the formation of the future program of the harbour and marine industries".