Press Release: EU and Ukraine civil protection chiefs meet –proposals for further cooperation

Stavros Dimas, Commissioner for Environment met Volodymyr Shandra, the Ukrainian Minister for Emergency Services on 17 March, 2008, to discuss further cooperation between the EU and Ukraine on disaster response. The European Commission and Ukraine signed an arrangement in 2007 providing for the exchange of information during emergencies. The Commissioner and the Minister were discussing the possibility of broadening this arrangement to include wider cooperation in civil protection in areas such as collaboration on environmental assessment, mutual assistance during emergencies and training opportunities.