Publicat pe 07/04/2022

Brussels, 7th April 2022: The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania (CCIR) attended the meeting of the members of the Board of Directors of the Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry (EUROCHAMBRES) on 7 April, represented by the Secretary General of the organization, Mr. Ovidiu Silaghi. The main item on the agenda was the aftermath of the war in Ukraine and the immediate measures needed to mitigate the economic effects of this armed conflict.

“About 30% of Ukrainian companies have been affected by this unprovoked war. We estimate a 50% drop in Ukraine’s GDP due to major war damage. 65% of Ukraine’s exports were made through the ports of Odessa and Mariupol, and due to Russian assaults, these ports are no longer safe for exports of Ukrainian goods. In this context, we call on the support of all EUROCHAMBRES members to identify alternatives for transporting Ukrainian goods to Europe. We propose that each national chamber of commerce in the Member States of the European Union be twinned with one of the 25 regional chambers of commerce in Ukraine. The aim of this project is to facilitate collaboration between the chambers of commerce of the European Union and those of Ukraine and, in particular, to provide support to each Ukrainian regional chamber of commerce by providing humanitarian, financial and chamber-level support”. declared the President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine, Mr. Gennadiy Chyzhykov.

“CCIR welcomes the proposal of the President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine, Mr. Gennadiy Chyzhykov, and wants to start working with one of the regional chambers of commerce in Odessa, Chernivtsi or Uzhhorod as soon as possible to provide full support in these troubled times. Shortly before the start of this war, the President of the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry paid an official visit to the CCIR, at which point we spoke very clearly in favor of continuing Ukraine’s pro-European path. We must not forget that the association agreement between the European Union and Ukraine entered into force in September 2017, representing a major stage in bilateral relations, offering new economic opportunities to both parties. Supporting the efforts of Ukrainian colleagues thus becomes a duty for all members of EUROCHAMBRES and we are convinced that this project will be implemented very soon “, said the Secretary General of CCIR, Mr. Ovidiu Silaghi.

Background

CCIR has been a member of EUROCHAMBRES since 1993, initially having the status of an affiliate member, and since 2007, due to Romania’s accession to the European Union, it has obtained full membership.

EUROCHAMBRES represents over 20 million businesses in Europe through 45 members (43 National Associations of Chambers of Commerce and Industry and two Transnational Chamber Organizations) and a European network of 1700 Regional and Local Chambers. Over 93% of these enterprises are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).