‘Roaming’ for Ukraine: affordable calls agreement extended
Date: 19/07/23
Over 4 million Ukrainian refugees have been registered across the European Union since 24 February 2022. In the face of this humanitarian crisis, telecom operators based in Ukraine and in the European Union share the conviction that displaced Ukrainians should continue to have affordable access to connectivity to stay in touch with family and friends and to access the Internet and reliable sources of information. An agreement between EU and Ukrainian telecom operators, supporting affordable or free roaming and international calls, was extended on 9 July 2023 for another year.
The signatories of the Joint Statement seek the continuation of a coordinated approach involving efforts on both sides, facilitated by the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) and the Ukrainian National Regulatory Authority NCEC. That coordinated approach minimises additional costs for both EU and Ukrainian operators and enables each to cover their respective costs while facilitating communication for Ukrainian consumers and keeping user charges at the minimum. For this coordinated approach to be efficient, as many EU and Ukrainian mobile and fixed operators as possible and their international carriers should be part of the initiative. The Joint Statement remains open for all operators willing to sign at any time.
The European Commission facilitated the agreement and welcomed the prolongation of mutually lower rates to connect calls across borders. The Commission urges all operators to join the agreement.
The initial agreement was signed in April 2022. The Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) monitors the impact of the agreement. The latest data demonstrates that the agreement has been efficient in allowing operators to provide affordable calls across borders. When it comes to inter-operator rates for cross-border calls, operators in the European Economic Area (EEA) that are part of the agreement are subject to significantly lower rates than those operators who have not signed it.
In parallel, the Commission has been preparing to integrate Ukraine into the EU Roaming area, which would provide a more stable and longer-term solution. In April 2023, the EU-Ukraine association committee adopted the Commission’s proposal for Ukraine to join the EU Roaming rules. The next step is for Ukraine to fully align their legislation with that of the EU and then for the Council of the European Union to adopt the final decision.
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