Kiev, Jun 19 (IANS/DPA): Ukraine has cleared the way for the creation of a joint mobile communication roaming zone with the EU states.

Citizens of the 27 EU member states would be able to use their mobile phones in Ukraine without additional charges for telephony, text messages or the Internet.

President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the law on Tuesday.

"The next step is to obtain a favourable assessment of our legislative amendments from the European side and start negotiations on joining the single roaming area with the EU," said Digital Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, according to a statement from his Ministry.

For its part, the EU abolished additional roaming charges for Ukrainians after the Russian invasion in 2022 due to the high number of refugees.

Ukraine is the first EU accession candidate to take this step.

Kiev hopes the move will help encourage investment.

The Eastern European country has officially been a candidate for accession to the European Union since 2022.