The Ukrainian-Estonian Chamber of Commerce (UECC) was founded on 31 May in the Estonian capital, Tallinn, to help with cooperation between the Estonian and Ukrainian companies and the two countries.
The chamber was established by two companies, Elme Messer Gaas and Ilyashev & Partners Law Office.
The NGO aims to develop the bilateral business and cultural contacts between Estonian and Ukrainian organisations and individuals, to assist Ukrainian businesses in entering the European Union market and inspire Estonian businesses to discover untapped opportunities of the lucrative Ukrainian market.
According to Vitali Galitskih, a board member of Ilyashev & Partners, the chamber would collaborate with the embassy of Ukraine in Estonia and the embassy of Estonia in Ukraine to achieve its aims.
Room for development
The chamber said in a statement that bilateral economic relations between Ukraine and Estonia have developed and grown in the past years, but there is still room for development in increasing exports by Estonian companies to Ukraine, as well as in increasing the share of Ukraine’s investments in Estonia.
The chamber said that Ukrainian citizens were the most active company founders through the Estonian e-residency programme and have so far established over 450 companies in Estonia. The e-residency programme gives access to Estonia’s digital infrastructure and public digital services so that the approved e-residents can establish and manage an EU company and enjoy the same rights in business as Estonians.
The Estonian businesses have also become increasingly more active in Ukraine, offering also know-how. In April, the Tallinn-based startup community space, Lift99, opened its first hub outside Estonia, in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.
Cover: The location of Estonia and Ukraine on the map of Europe, courtesy of Wikipedia.
