European Commissioner Štefan Füle: Сivil society should be the driving force behind Ukraine’s European integration

On November 21 Kyiv hosted the First Annual Conference of the Ukrainian National Platform of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum. The platform’s activities are supported by the European Program of the International Renaissance Foundation.

In his statement, European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy Štefan Füle stressed that civil society is the driving force and advocate for reforms necessary to speed up Ukraine’s political association and economic integration with the EU.   

In his letter, the European commissioner also gave an assessment of the situation in Ukraine following the parliamentary elections. “It is very important that the Ukrainian side takes concrete steps based on the OSCE’s observations regarding the elections. The composition of the Ukrainian parliament should reflect the true will of the people,” he said.  

Meanwhile, EU Ambassador to Ukraine Jan Tombiński emphasized that the signing of the Association Agreement was postponed because of the need to assess the parliamentary elections and the problem of selective justice in Ukraine. He believes Ukraine should continue to reform its judicial system and address the issue of politicians that are in prison. The head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine stressed that politicians should be held responsible for their actions, but that criminal prosecution is unacceptable.    

In his turn, First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Valeriy Khoroshkovsky stressed that European integration is a top strategic priority for his government and determines the direction of reforms. He noted that Ukrainian law clearly defines the country’s EU integration policy. He said the EU Association Agreement may be signed in 2013, at the same time as the EU-Ukraine Summit. He also said that Ukraine joining the Customs Union with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan is “outside the law” but that economic cooperation with these countries will continue. Khoroshkovsky also said that the part of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement on establishing a deep and comprehensive free trade zone should be put into effect as soon as possible.

Contacts:
Ukrainian National Platform
of the Eastern Partnership
Civil Society Forum
Andriy Kohut
kohut.andriy@gmail.com

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The essential role of the European Program lies in promotion of Ukraine’s European integration, combining external pressure of the EU with the domestic one of the Ukrainian civil society, and thus contributing to promotion of open society values in Ukraine.