(VOVworld) – The EU-Ukraine summit took place in Kiev on Monday at the presence of President Petro Poroshenko, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, and European Council President Donald Tusk.

President Petro Poroshenko, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, and European Council President Donald Tusk at the EU-Ukraine summit in Kiev in 2015 (Photo: Sergey Dolzhenko, EPA)

A joint statement released after the meeting said the application of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) between the EU and Ukraine will start on January 1, 2016.

The summit noted that a reinvigorated reform process will be crucial in view of Ukraine's political association and economic integration with the EU.

This is the first summit within the framework of the Ukraine-EU Integration Agreement in which the implementation of the document will create certain steps forward to step up Ukraine’s political and economic integration with the bloc based on respecting mutual values and expanding them efficiently.

The communiqué also welcomed first reform steps taken by Ukraine in key areas notably constitution, decentralization, anti-corruption, judicial system, restructuring of the energy sector, and improvement of investment environment.