KIEV, Aug. 16 - Foreign Minister Borys Tarasiuk said that Ukraine adheres to the idea of establishing a free-trade zone in the framework of the Common Economic Space, but the country doesn't plan to participate in a customs union.

Speaking in an interview with Kommersant-Ukraina Newspaper published on Tuesday, the minister said Ukraine is ready to take part in the CES to the extent it doesn't conflict with the country's strategic targets in foreign policy, in particular joining the World Trade Organization in 2005 and joining the European Union in the future.