REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS AND REGIONAL COOPERATION
including experts from the FRS and the ECB, makes an attempt to predict it for this or that
direction.
Second, from the point of customary Ukrainian depositors (who are not professional
players on the exchange market) attempts to transfer hryvnya assets into dollars, dollars
into euros and so on are more likely to work harm than benefit. Third, when looking at the
interest rates one can make a conclusion that even with the inflation taken into account,
interest payments on hryvnya deposits are still higher than those on the foreign exchange
currency.
Apart from the above examined single issues connected with the Ukrainian crisis and the
impact of the world financial breakdown on Ukraine, there exists a nation-wide level on
which developments can be affected.
The country must understand that not only domestic economic and political problems but
also the external disturbances are of a destructive nature.
1. On the political and social levels one should honestly tell the people of Ukraine that the
situation is not just difficult, but also such that will probably be aggravating. As judged
by the dynamics of the internal and external processes, Ukraine has not yet reached the
lowest point of the crisis (the so called “bottom”). At the same time it is still difficult to
predict for how long the country will be in the state of depression and when the recovery
and expansion will start.
2. One must do their utmost to mitigate social consequences of the crisis for the poorest. A
panic on the cash foreign exchange market is not only economically ungrounded but also
artificially maintained. Both problems with a number of commercial banks and general
restrictions on withdrawal of deposits equally undermine confidence in the country’s
political and economic management.
3. Apart from the lack of a general strategy of overcoming the current crisis, Ukraine has
no estimates as for a possible increase in the unemployment rate and the amount of funds
necessary for making redundancy payments, as well as the sources of such funds. Analysis
of a decrease in public financing of social and cultural sphere should also be made.
4. The state must realize once and for all that the harmed export-oriented industries
contribute over 47% to the GDP of the country. And backing-up those industries has to
become a priority that overcomes any political likes and dislikes of the government.
5. On the nation-wide level questions of economic security must be solved. The first in the
rank here are external issues – from energy prices to the banking system protection (with
the foreign share in this system taken into account).
6. At last, actions aimed at minimizing consequences of the world financial and internal
crises should be viewed from the point of a possibility of their practical implementation.
At the same time such actions should not be presented as a political (successful or not, but
still political) project.
The world will certainly overcome the global financial crisis 2008. As due to any other
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