The Interparliamentary Assembly of Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Sejm and Senate of Republic of Poland, and Seimas of Republic of Lithuania condemned acts of Russia's aggression, called on Russia to immediately withdraw all military equipment and troops from Ukraine and expressed confidence that the European Union sanctions against Russia must be toughened should Russia continue ignoring the implementation of the Minsk agreements.
This is stipulated in the declaration of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the three countries passed on Friday in Vilnius and posted on the Ukrainian parliament’s website.
‘The Interparliamentary Assembly… condemned acts of Russia’s aggression, in particular, illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and military aggression in the east of Ukraine, which took place in violation of the international law and put in threat security in the regions and Europe on the whole; called on Russia to immediately withdraw all military equipment, hardware and troops from the territory of Ukraine; resume full effective control over Ukrainian-Russian border, as well as to create conditions in Ukraine to conduct such control,’ reads the document.
In addition, the Interparliamentary Assembly expressed confidence that the European Union sanctions against Russia must be toughened should Russia continue ignoring the implementation of the Minsk agreements.
According to the declaration, the Interparliamentary Assembly expressed support to Ukraine, its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity in compliance with borders acknowledged internationally and expressed solidarity with Ukraine on the basis of joint understanding, interests, obligations, respect and values of the European Union and Ukraine.
‘The Interparliamentary Assembly… demanded immediate release of Ukrainian officer, Verkhovna Rada deputy and a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Nadia Savchenko, as well as other Ukrainian citizens illegally kept in custody on the territory of Russia,’ reads the document.
The Interparliamentary Assembly called on the Parliaments of the EU member countries to rapidly ratify the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union in solidarity with the Ukrainian people in order to comprehensively enact the Association Agreement in 2016. The declaration is signed by Speaker of the Lithuanian Seimas Loreta Grauziniene, Marshal of the Senate of the Republic of Poland Bogdan Borusewicz and Head of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman.
