The European Union will not introduce new trade preferences for Ukraine immediately after the current liberalization mechanism expires on June 5, 2025.

Source: this was reported to the correspondent of "European Truth" on condition of anonymity by a European official familiar with the trade negotiations between Ukraine and the EU.

Details: The EU official emphasized that after June 5, 2025 – when the current measures of "trade visa-free" (Autonomous Trade Measures, ATM) provided by the EU to Ukraine expire – trade conditions will revert to pre-war status.

At the same time, the EU, along with Ukraine, will propose some favorable changes.

"Starting from June 6, the autonomous trade measures – trade preferences for Ukraine introduced by the EU after the start of Russia's full-scale aggression – will end. Conditions will revert to pre-war ones. Both trade preferences and restrictions currently in place on certain goods, such as chicken meat, eggs, honey, etc., will cease," the source told "European Truth".

He added that there is a discussion about maintaining trade preferences for specific items of Ukrainian exports to the EU, such as steel.

"Further, the European Union will continue discussions on amending Article 29 of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU to develop mutually beneficial trade conditions and support Ukraine's economy, which is suffering from the war," said the European official.

Earlier, Poland's Minister of Agriculture Czesław Siekierski stated that the European Commission had not yet provided the EU Council with proposals for a "trade visa-free regime" with Ukraine.

It is worth noting that on May 13, 2024, the EU Council approved the extension of preferential trade with Ukraine for another year – until June 5, 2025.

Regarding the future format of trade relations between Ukraine and the EU, preliminary agreements were established that the conditions for duty-free trade would be integrated into the Association Agreement with the EU.

In February 2025, First Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko stated at a joint meeting of the European Commission and the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine that Ukraine's primary task in 2025 is to complete consultations on trade liberalization with the EU in accordance with Article 29 of the Association Agreement.

In February 2025, the agriculture ministers of Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, and Slovakia called for the reintroduction of pre-war quotas on agricultural imports from Ukraine.