Ukraine joined Norway and Lichtenstein as the third non-EU nation to become a member of the European blockchain partnership (EBP). EBP is a partnership between 27 nations to enable easy delivery of public services between member states.
According to the Ukrainian minister for digital transformation, Ukraine will join the EBP as an observer on June 17. However, the ultimate goal is to link its digital economy with other EBP member states. Ukraine also aims to extend its collaboration with the blockchain network to other nations.
This initiative started last year
The second largest European nation is moving to join the EBP since last year. The move began when Oleksii Zhmerenetskyi and Konstantin Yarmolenko wrote a letter of intent to the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von Der Leyen.
Zhmerenetskyi heads the blockchain4Ukraine parliamentary group, while Yarmolenko is the CEO and founder of Ukraine's virtual assets. In the letter, Ukraine also signaled its intention to join the European blockchain services infrastructure (EBSI).
However, Von Der Leyen accepted that Ukraine would join the EBP only as an observer. Yarmolenko revealed that Ukraine intends to run an EBSI test pilot node. Furthermore, it intends to use blockchain technology to test cross-border use cases for public services.
He admitted that the cryptocurrency donations received during the war against Russia proved to be very useful. However, added Yarmolenko, "our next goal is to fully integrate EU and Ukrainian blockchain solutions within the EBP / EBSI initiatives".
Ukraine hopes to become a full member of the EBP once the pilot use cases of the blockchain with the EBP as an observer are completed. Yarmolenko also said Ukraine intends to have more blockchain partners to allow its citizens to access cross-border public services. These services include refugee / asylum support, identity verification and verification of educational diplomas and other credentials.
Strengthen Ukraine's ties with the EU
Yarmolenko also said that Ukraine will strengthen its ties with the EU thanks to this initiative. Zhmerenetskyi pointed out other advantages of the blockchain partnership at the European level. He said Ukrainian driving licenses will be accepted in other parts of Europe when Ukrainians apply for asylum or become refugees.
Furthermore, the move would reduce the barrier to accepting Ukrainian credentials for higher education. Recently, Mairead McGuinness of the European Commission highlighted the need to regulate digital goods. McGuinness heads the Commission's Union of Financial Services, Capital Markets and Financial Stability. She added that regulation must cover all crypto assets, including stable currencies.
The commissioner also revealed that the Commission is discussing a proposal for Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) with the French authorities. According to McGuinness, the MiCA rules will provide clear guidelines for financial stability, consumer protection and market integrity. She further stated that the need to discuss this proposal has become more urgent in light of the current conditions in the cryptocurrency market. However, you did not disclose the progress of the discussion with the French authorities.
