Ukraine joined to the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) funding instrument. Volodymyr Omelyan, the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine stated the above during the participation in the TEN-T & CEF CONFERENCE, which was held by the European Commission in Bucharest (Romania).

Violeta Bulc, the European Commissioner for Mobility and Transport and the management of the European Investment Bank welcomed the expansion of cooperation between Ukraine and the EU and invited Ukraine to participate in projects under the CEF mechanism.

"Today, Ukraine can participate in joint projects with EU Member States concerning cross-border infrastructure. For example, the construction and improvement of railway routes running through the territory of Ukraine, connecting with the European railway network through neighboring Poland, Romania, Slovakia or Hungary. It is also possible to create joint projects to improve the port infrastructure, including the Azov region", - the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine noted.  "Ukraine-EU cooperation has never been as intense and productive as it has been for the past five years. Today, Ukraine has joined to Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) funding instrument. This has become another important step towards full integration of transport infrastructure into the EU".

CEF programme budget for Transport is about €23.5 billion, but in 2020, it can be increased.

Within the framework of the conference, the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine met with Violeta Bulc, the European Commissioner for Mobility and Transport. The parties discussed important issues of Ukraine-EU cooperation in the field of transport and infrastructure, in particular Ukraine's joining to the CEF funding instrument, EU assistance in the restoring of the Azov Sea infrastructure, the development of the Rhine-Danube and Orient/East-Med Corridor related to the European TEN-T network, expansion of aviation and railway connections with the EU.

"The High Level Agreement on the extension of the TEN-T MAPS with Eastern Partnership states and after approval of the Indicative TEN-T Action Plan by the EU and the World Bank together with the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) instruments are providing unique possibilities for attracting substantial investments for smart, safe and green transport infrastructure in Ukraine", - Volodymyr Omelyan stated.

The Head of the Ministry stressed on the importance of opening up a new investment opportunities regarding the launch of the CEF Transport Blending Facility and the Platform for Investment in Safe Transport.

At the same time, she noted that Ukraine should strengthen the work on the adoption by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine a package of transport European integration draft laws. The European Commissioner for Transport also confirmed that she would visit Ukraine this summer.