Prime Minister Pavel Filip and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Groisman considered possibilities of intensifying the Moldovan-Ukrainian cooperation in a number of areas of common interest in a meeting in Kyiv, IPN reports.

Pavel Filip said the official visit made to Kiev before the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Moldova and Ukraine is a good occasion for discussing topical subjects. He underlined the importance of holding this year the meeting of the Moldovan-Ukrainian intergovernmental commission for economic cooperation that last met in 2011.

The Moldovan Premier reiterated the importance of accelerating the coming into force of the agreement on cooperation in conserving and sustainably developing the basin of the Nistru River that was signed in Rome in 2012. The two officials decided to set up a joint commission that would assess the impact of the energy complex working on the Nistru on the river’s ecosystem and would work out regulations concerning the functioning of the hydroelectric plant in Novodnestrovsk. Volodymyr Groisman said the Ukrainian authorities are ready to take part in carrying out the studies needed to reach a correct technical decision about the exploitation of the Nistru.

In another development, the Ukrainian official thanked the Moldovan authorities for the decision to eliminate the commercial barriers imposed on Ukrainian producers and noted that Moldova is not only a neighboring state, but also a strategic partner of Ukraine.

The interlocutions also exchanged opinions on the Transnistrian conflict settlement process and stressed the importance of promoting a common approach within the talks in the 5+2 format. Pavel Filip reasserted Moldova’s support for the diplomatic settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine, by ensuring the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

At the end of the meeting, Pavel Filip invited Volodymyr Groisman to pay a visit to Chisinau and confirmed his readiness to take part in the GUAM Summit that will be staged in Kyiv at end-March.

It should be noted that trade between Moldova and Ukraine last year came to US$394.5 million. Moldova’s exports increased by 8.2% on 2015, while imports of Ukrainian products grew by 2.9%.