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The Spanish Confederation of Employers' Organizations or CEOE includes public and private companies in Spain in all sectors. It is a member of BusinessEurope and Business at OECD. It should be mentioned that ULIE has already acquired observer status in the mentioned association and actively promotes the interests of Ukrainian business on this platform.
Ukrainian industrialists have signed an agreement with their Spanish colleagues, which has been in force since 1999. However, the realities of the martial law economy and the need for large-scale post-war reconstruction of Ukraine require updating the document and the corresponding intensification of business contacts between the partner countries.
This was the purpose of the online meeting of ULIE President Anatolii Kinakh with the CEOE leadership.
The leader of the Ukrainian business community thanked Spain for its international support of Ukraine, sheltering Ukrainian refugees, providing humanitarian aid and equipment for defense needs.
Anatolii Kinakh specified the tasks envisaged in the Ukraine Recovery Plan, presented in Lugano in the summer of 2022. It is about the restoration of civil, transport, energy infrastructure, modernization of industry, etc.
The ULIE President proposed to hold a separate business conference for entrepreneurs, investors from both countries, to discuss more specifically the restoration projects that foreign colleagues could join. The business union is also ready to assist and promote Spanish business that will enter Ukraine, create added value and jobs here.
"Based on these tasks, it would be good to sign an updated memorandum and then adopt a clear action plan for its implementation," Anatolii Kinakh emphasized.
CEOE President Marta Blanco supported the proposals of the Ukrainian side.
In addition, she informed that the Confederation does not stand aside from helping Ukraine. Since the beginning of the large-scale invasion, the business community of Spain has been closely monitoring the situation, trying to help Ukrainians where possible. Thus, the CEOE has created a platform where Spanish entrepreneurs post vacancies for Ukrainian refugees. This is done in close cooperation with the Embassy of Ukraine in Madrid and the Spanish government.
The parties agreed to maintain working communications, in particular, to start preparations for the business conference.