Brussels, February 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The group of the European People's Party and the Green Party in the European Parliament are against the extension of the work of the monitoring mission of the European Parliament, which consists of former president of the EP Pat Cox and former president of Poland Alexander Kwasniewski, a source in the European Parliament has said.
“The Greens and the EPP want the mission to complete its work within two to
four months. Others believe that the mission should be working until the Eastern
Partnership summit in Vilnius,” one of the participants of the recent discussion
of the mission’s fate at the Conference of Presidents of the European Parliament
told Interfax-Ukraine.
The discussion lasted about two hours and the MEPs have not come to a
consensus concerning the timeframes of the mission. Therefore, they decided to
hear the report of the former presidents in two months, and then decide on the
timeframe of the mission.
The interlocutor told the agency that the position of Head of the Committee
on Foreign Affairs and EPP member Elmar Brok, who strongly opposed the extension
of the mission, doesn’t reflect the views of the EPP group as a whole.
“Most importantly, the mission does not end. Otherwise this would have been
clearly stated. Most of the meeting’s participants were against the early
completion of the mission. Therefore, no decision was made,” the source
said.
In his opinion, the biggest problem of the mission was that it had not
produced the results, which were expected by the majority in the European
Parliament. “From this follow the problems of the mission, and as for the
support of the mission by the Ukrainian opposition, it is not exactly what one
could expect,” the source said.
When asked, why they have such an opinion with respect to the position of the
Ukrainian opposition, which has publicly declared its support for the
Cox-Kwasniewski mission, the politician referred to informal conversations.
“MEPs do not feel the support of the opposition in Ukraine for this mission.
Why? This follows from informal conversations. While continuing the
confrontation with the government, the opposition is not interested in a
stabilizing factor, which is the mission, but cannot openly say so,” the source
said.
There is also an understanding that an important factor that could contribute
to the efficient work of the mission is the stabilization of the situation in
Ukraine. “From this point of view, the biggest mistake of the Ukrainian
authorities were the new charges against [Ukraine’s former Prime Minister Yulia]
Tymoshenko. They worked against the mission, as there was no understanding that
the mission is a guarantee of the stabilization of the situation. The mission
does not change Ukraine politically, that is not its role. The goal of the
mission is humanitarian, and it is efficient from this point of view,” he
said.
In his words, it is important that the Ukrainian government should not make
new steps that would “delegitimize the mission” in the public opinion.
“It is important to understand that if it were not for this mission, there
would be no instrument to influence the Ukrainian authorities in the area of
human rights. Everybody knows that the results of this mission are already
there, and it is the only channel of contact,” the source said.
In this regard, he expressed confidence that the mission will not be closed
in two months. “We should enable the Ukrainian authorities to make real steps
and justify the need for the further work of the mission,” he concluded.
As reported, Cox and Kwasniewski started monitoring the court proceedings
involving former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on June 11, 2012 under an
agreement between Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and European Parliament
President Martin Schulz.
Their mandate was subsequently expanded to include the court proceedings
involving former Interior Minister of Ukraine Yuriy Lutsenko and former Acting
Defense Minister of Ukraine Valeriy Ivaschenko. Their work was suspended when
parliamentary elections began in Ukraine and was then restarted.
Their latest visit to Ukraine was on February 4-5. They visited Tymoshenko at
Kharkiv-based Central Clinical Hospital No. 5, and Lutsenko at Mena penal colony
in Chernihiv region.
