You're reading: European Parliament adopts resolution on Ukraine

Brussels – The European Parliament has passed a resolution on Ukraine, which got support from a majority of MEPs. 

The key provisions of the document include a reminder for Russia that it is a guarantor of the existing Ukrainian border, the initiative to establish an independent commission to investigate human rights violations registered during mass protests in Ukraine, and a call for holding a donor conference for the provision of financial assistance to Kyiv.

The resolution was adopted at a plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Thursday. Prior to this, the document was discussed in the European Parliament on Wednesday.

The resolution says that the existing borders of Ukraine were guaranteed by the United States of America, the Russian Federation and the United Kingdom in the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances when Ukraine relinquished nuclear weapons and joined the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and reminds the Russian Federation that, together with the two other countries mentioned above, it committed itself in the same act to refraining from economic coercion designed to subordinate to its own interest

In this connection, the European Parliament called “on all sides and third countries to respect and support the unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” “on all political forces within Ukraine and all the international actors involved to commit themselves to work for the territorial integrity and national unity of Ukraine, taking account of the cultural and linguistic composition of the country and its history.”

The EP also urged Russia “to adopt a constructive attitude so as to create the conditions for Ukraine to benefit from bilateral relations with both the EU and Russia.” The parliament also called on the EU and its member states “to speak to Russia with one voice in support of the European aspirations of Ukraine and other EaP countries that freely choose to deepen their relations with the EU.”

The MEPs took the view that the deep and comprehensive free trade area provisions “do not represent any commercial challenges for the Russian Federation and that the Association Agreement is no impediment to Ukraine’s good relations with its eastern neighbor.” The instability in the shared neighborhood is neither in the EU’s nor in Russia’s interest, while applying political, economic or other coercion is in breach of the Helsinki Final Act, according to the resolution.

The European Parliament also called on the Verkhovna Rada and the incoming government to respect the rights of minorities in the country and the use of Russian and other minority languages. The EP also called for the adoption of new legislation in line with Ukraine’s obligations under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.

The resolution also contains a call on the European Commission to work together with the Ukrainian authorities to find ways to counterbalance the effects of the retaliatory measures adopted by Russia in order to stop the signing of the Association Agreement, as well as of possible new measures. The EP also welcomed the announcement by the EU Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn of the EU’s readiness to provide a substantial, ambitious, both short- and long-term financial aid package.

The European Parliament also called for the setting-up of an independent commission to investigate, in close collaboration with the Council of Europe International Advisory Panel and the OSCE, the human rights violations that have taken place since the beginning of the demonstrations.

The MEPs also commended the people of Ukraine “on the orderly change in power and on their civic resilience in the past few months.” “The fact that this civic and popular protest serves as an example and will mark a watershed in the history of Ukraine,” the document reads.

At the same time, the resolution says that “this democratic, civic victory should not be marred by any spirit of revenge or acts of retribution towards adversaries, or by political infighting. The EP stressed that those who committed crimes against the citizens of Ukraine and who misused the power of the state should face independent trials.

The European Parliament welcomed the release of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko from prison, and expressed the hope that her release “will symbolize the end of selective and politically motivated justice in Ukraine.” The EP also demands the immediate and unconditional release of all the demonstrators and political prisoners who have been illegally detained, the dropping of all charges against them.

In the preamble to the resolution, the European Parliament said it pays tribute to those fighting and dying for European values, and expressed its deepest condolences to the families of the victims, strongly condemned all acts of violence and called on all Ukrainian citizens, along with political and civic leaders, to act with the utmost responsibility.

The EP also firmly condemned “the brutal and disproportionate action of anti-riot forces such as Berkut, snipers and others that led to the dramatic escalation of violence.” The parliament warned that “any further escalation of violence would be disastrous for the Ukrainian nation and could undermine the unity and territorial integrity of the country.”

The MEPs also stressed that “it is now of paramount importance that all parties demonstrate a sense of responsibility, restraint and commitment to an inclusive political dialogue, and exclude extrajudicial retaliation.” It also urges all political forces “to work together at this critical juncture for Ukraine and to facilitate compromise solutions, taking clear distance from extremists and avoiding provocation and violent actions that might fuel separatist moves.”

That part of the resolution that concerns an international donors’ conference on a financial bailout to Ukraine says: “[The European Parliament] calls for an international donors’ conference to be held without undue delay.

The European Parliament also calls on the European Commission and the European External Action Service “to make the best use of funds available for Ukraine under the existing financial instruments and to consider making additional resources available for Ukraine as soon as possible. The EP also expects that “the Council and the Commission to come forward as soon as possible, together with the IMF and the World Bank, with short-term financial assistance and a balance of payments facility, complemented with a long-term package, together with the EBRD and the EIB, of financial support to help Ukraine tackle its worsening economic and social situation and provide economic support to launch the necessary deep and comprehensive reforms of the Ukrainian economy,” the resolution reads.

Yet, the EP acknowledges that widespread corruption “at all levels of government continues to hamper Ukraine’s potential to develop and is undermining the confidence of citizens in their own institutions.” In this connection, the EP urges the new government to make the fight against corruption a top priority in its programme, and calls for the EU to assist these efforts,” the resolution says.

The EP also says it expresses support for the civil-society and non-partisan initiative to set up a ‘Maidan Platform’, in order to develop a strategy to overcome the endemic corruption in Ukraine.

In addition, the EP stresses the urgent need to set up a truly independent and impartial judicial system.

The part of the resolution that concerns the investigation of state assets embezzlement calls for an investigation into the massive embezzlement of state funds and assets by the cronies and ‘family’ of ousted President Yanukovych, for the freezing of all their assets pending clarification of how they were acquired and, where they are proved to have been stolen, for the return of such assets by the governments of the Member States.

The EP also announce s its support of the EU’s approach, which combines intensified diplomatic efforts with targeted sanctions against those responsible for ordering human rights abuses related to political oppression; calls for the enactment of the targeted sanctions as agreed by the Foreign Affairs Council and urges the Member States to implement their own anti money laundering legislation to stop the flow of embezzled money from Ukraine, and to ensure the return of stolen assets deposited in the EU.

The EP also says that it considers that a truly independent investigation of the crimes committed should start immediately and that the targeted sanctions should be lifted as soon as the situation in Ukraine improves and such an investigation of the crimes committed starts to deliver results. The EP urges the Commission, the Member States and international humanitarian organizations to deploy quick, robust and direct medical and humanitarian assistance for all victims.

The resolution also notes the enormous impact that targeted sanctions [including an asset freeze and a visa ban directed against those responsible for human rights violations, violence and the use of excessive force, and to suspend export licenses for equipment that might be used for internal repression] have had on Ukrainian public opinion, and is of the opinion that these measures could have been adopted earlier; takes the view, however, that these sanctions should be maintained as part of the EU policy towards Ukraine during this transitional period.

The EP also calls on the Council to authorize the Commission to speed up the visa dialogue with Ukraine; stresses that the swift finalization of the visa liberalization agreement – following the example of Moldova – between the EU and Ukraine is the best way to respond to the expectations of Ukrainian civil society and youth; calls, in the meantime, for the immediate introduction of temporary, very simple, low-cost visa procedures at EU and Member State level, together with strengthened research cooperation, expanded youth exchanges and increased availability of scholarships.

The EP welcomes the recent recognition by the Council that the Association Agreement, including a DCFTA, does not constitute the final goal in EU–Ukraine cooperation; points out that the EU stands ready to sign the AA/DCFTA as soon as the current political crisis is resolved and the new Ukrainian authorities are ready for a serious European perspective.

The EP stresses furthermore that Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) refers to all European States, including Ukraine, which may apply to become a Member of the Union, provided that it adheres to the principles of democracy, respects fundamental freedoms and human and minority rights, and ensures the rule of law.

The EP says it believes that legislative elections should be organized swiftly after the presidential elections and before the end of the year.

The EP strongly encourages the Verkhovna Rada to adopt the necessary electoral legislation in line with the Venice Commission recommendations, including a renewed law on the financing of political parties that addresses the issues identified by GRECO and the OSCE/ODIHR. “[The EP] takes note of the decision to hold presidential elections on May 25, 2014; underlines the need to ensure that these elections will be free and fair,” reads the resolution.

The EP thus encourages international observation of the upcoming elections and declares its readiness to set up its own observation mission for this purpose through a substantial European Parliament election observation mission. The EP calls on the Commission, the Council of Europe and the OSCE/ODIHR to provide reinforced pre-election support and a substantial long-term election monitoring mission so that the presidential elections scheduled for May 25, 2014 can be held in accordance with the highest standards and produce a result all contenders can accept.

“[The EP] urges all political forces to work together, at this critical juncture for Ukraine, towards a peaceful political transition, an ambitious and broad-based reform agenda and a European-standards-oriented government, to uphold the unity and territorial integrity of the country, and to facilitate compromise solutions for the future of Ukraine,” reads the resolution.

The EP “calls on the interim authorities to guarantee democratic rights and freedoms to all democratic political forces and to prevent attacks against any of them.”

The EP stresses the importance of not losing momentum in addressing the root causes of the crisis, and establishing people’s trust in politics and the institutions; believes, furthermore, that this requires constitutional and structural reforms aimed at the creation of an effective system of checks and balances, a closer link between politics and society, the rule of law, accountability, and a truly independent and impartial judicial system and credible elections.

The EP welcomes the responsible role played by the Verkhovna Rada in assuming its full constitutional functions and filling the political and institutional vacuum and stresses how important it is that the Ukrainian Parliament and its members continue to abide by the rule of law.