Civil Society Forum of the Eastern Partnership calls for initial the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU

Civil Society Forum of the Eastern Partnership calls on Ukraine and the EU to conclude negotiations on the Association Agreement between EU and Ukraine.

“Its publication would strengthen the leverage of civil society to deliver key messages to society in Ukraine and potentially other Eastern Partnership countries on how the Agreement can become an instrument of transformation and reform in Ukraine,” experts say.

The Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum also expresses its concern over “the growing democratic deficit in Ukraine (the criminal prosecution of political and civil society leaders)”. The Forum stresses the need for the Government of Ukraine and the President of Ukraine to respect democratic values in order to make it possible to continue integration with the European Union.

“Given what has been achieved so far, and given the importance of the Association Agreement with Ukraine for the success of the entire Eastern Partnership initiative, we call on the EU and Ukraine to initial the Agreement in the near future,” statement authors say.

The full statement is here

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Main objective of the International Renaissance Foundation is to provide financial and operational assistance to the development of an open and democratic society in Ukraine by supporting key civic initiatives in this area.