EU ambassadors approve new trade deal with Ukraine, signing expected next week — EPravda

EU member state ambassadors in Brussels on October 8 approved an updated version of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) agreement between the EU and Ukraine, which will replace the "trade visa-free regime" that expired in June 2025, European Pravda reports.

According to a European official familiar with the matter who spoke to European Pravda on condition of anonymity, the ambassadors’ decision must now be endorsed by EU ministers on Monday, October 13.

“Coreper (the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the EU) approved the decision today, and I can confirm that the act will be adopted on Monday by the EU Council on Justice and Home Affairs,” the source said.

Once the EU approves it, the agreement will be formally adopted within the EU–Ukraine Association Committee in its trade configuration, established under the Association Agreement. After Ukraine finalizes its position, the new trade rules between Ukraine and the EU will enter into force.

On July 1, 2025, the European Commission and Ukraine announced that they had concluded negotiations on the main principles for revising the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area.