As regards our membership of the European Union, I would like first to say that following accession our hopes and expectations about the economy have been fully confirmed. Our major trading partner within the EU is Germany which accounts for some 40% of our foreign trade balance. This has greatly improved owing to growth in exports of foodstuffs in particular. Members may be aware that Poland has an extensive agricultural sector and this makes our farmers very happy. We have also benefited greatly from direct subsidies to farmers. The subsidies were negotiated prior to Poland's accession to the EU and despite the fact that they are smaller and lower than in other European Union member states, our farmers are happy with the special process of distribution applied to them. The subsidies have resulted in more stability for farmers and their families.
A few years ago we witnessed a kind of divide in Europe and within the European Union on the issue of its relationship and co-operation with the United States. This was of concern to all the countries involved. However, we viewed the approach of the European Union foreign policy on eastern Europe as positive. We appreciated the involvement of the European Commission and its contribution to the process of change in Ukraine and Belarus, which Poland and Lithuania supported.
Ukraine and Belarus are very different, although they are in the same region. In 2004 Ukrainians made a democratic choice about their future and opted for a pro-western European democracy. Were it not for certain splits in the democratic parties in the Ukraine, their relations with western Europe would be closer. To all those who were morally or actively supporting the orange revolution in Ukraine, the electoral victory of Mr. Yanukovych's party came as a great surprise and raised concerns about the abandonment of accession to NATO. The removal of Mr. Tarasyuk from office as Minister for Foreign Affairs, as he was in charge of co-ordinating relations between the Ukraine and the EU and his replacement by Mr. Yanukovych was the cause of much scepticism.
Sceptical voices were raised about the relations between the Ukraine and the European Union, as they could have been much closer than they are today.
However, it is not all problems, there are positive developments that should be noted. The number of members of the democratic parties is much greater than Mr. Yanukovych's party membership, and Mr. Yanukovych and his cabinet have confirmed their willingness to join the European integration process.
We have launched a democratic dialogue with the Ukrainian authorities and our prime ministers held a meeting together and we have made a declaration in a statement that we will keep supporting democratic developments in Ukraine as long as they demonstrate a willingness for such developments.
I would like to make some general remarks on the integration process of the Ukraine and the European Union. In Poland we believe that the inclusion of the Ukraine in the European integration process and the will of the Ukrainian people to join NATO would be a further guarantee of stability to Europe after the end of the Cold War.
On the other hand we have doubts and concerns about the relative absorption capacity of the European Union, which is a very real issue. It may be a long process before the Ukraine is successful in its accession to the EU. We also believe that as a European Union state, we have not done enough or as much as we could have done to show the Ukrainians the prospects of integration with the European Union, even in the more distant future.
The accession of the Ukraine to the European Union is a question of time. However, we believe the Ukraine should have a new status either through a formal association with the EU or by being given the status of neighbour of the Europe Union which would manifest itself in the lowering of trade barriers. This would create a better sense of belonging to western Europe.