The Ukrainian authorities have limited Uzbekistan to exporting only three new cars to Ukraine per year in response to high import taxes on Ukrainian-made vehicles, RFE/RL's Uzbek Service reports.
Yefim Khazan, the executive director of Ukraine's Ukravtoprom car production company, said the limit was imposed in response to Uzbekistan's imposition of high tariffs on Ukrainian-manufactured automobiles exported to Uzbekistan.
Khazan said Uzbekistan needs to be reasonable when applying tariffs and fees to Ukrainian exports.
Oleh Omiletski, an official at Ukraine's Auto Consulting firm, admitted that cars manufactured in Uzbekistan are popular in Ukraine, but he also said Uzbekistan's import taxes for Ukrainian automobiles are "absurd."
Omiletski said for a car imported from Russia, the tariff in Uzbekistan is 5 percent of the cost of the automobile, but for Ukrainian-made cars it is 69 percent.
Ukraine maintains that Uzbekistan is breaching an intergovernmental agreement on free trade, which sets the rates of excise duty for goods traded between the two countries.
Uzbekistan has become a major manufacturer of automobiles in recent years. A joint venture with South Korea's Daewoo in the Uzbek city of Asaka*, in Andijon province, produces thousands of vehicles that are popular throughout Central Asia.
A second joint venture with the U.S. company General Motors produces thousands of cars and trucks that are also big sellers in Russia and neighboring countries.
* CORRECTION: This story erroneously located the Daewoo joint venture in Kokand. In fact, it is in Asaka.
Yefim Khazan, the executive director of Ukraine's Ukravtoprom car production company, said the limit was imposed in response to Uzbekistan's imposition of high tariffs on Ukrainian-manufactured automobiles exported to Uzbekistan.
Khazan said Uzbekistan needs to be reasonable when applying tariffs and fees to Ukrainian exports.
Oleh Omiletski, an official at Ukraine's Auto Consulting firm, admitted that cars manufactured in Uzbekistan are popular in Ukraine, but he also said Uzbekistan's import taxes for Ukrainian automobiles are "absurd."
Omiletski said for a car imported from Russia, the tariff in Uzbekistan is 5 percent of the cost of the automobile, but for Ukrainian-made cars it is 69 percent.
Ukraine maintains that Uzbekistan is breaching an intergovernmental agreement on free trade, which sets the rates of excise duty for goods traded between the two countries.
Uzbekistan has become a major manufacturer of automobiles in recent years. A joint venture with South Korea's Daewoo in the Uzbek city of Asaka*, in Andijon province, produces thousands of vehicles that are popular throughout Central Asia.
A second joint venture with the U.S. company General Motors produces thousands of cars and trucks that are also big sellers in Russia and neighboring countries.
* CORRECTION: This story erroneously located the Daewoo joint venture in Kokand. In fact, it is in Asaka.
