Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski has said that Ukraine has achieved great success in the fulfillment of the conditions necessary for the signing of the Association Agreement with the European Union, while some of the EU member states – the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Sweden – will not take a positive decision until Ukraine resolves the problem of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.
“During these meetings [a meeting of the EU Group of Friends of Ukraine and a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council] I had a serious feeling that there is a chance for success at the Eastern Partnership [Summit] in Vilnius [scheduled for November]. It seems that Ukraine has demonstrated great success while catching up with the implementation of reforms required by the EU. It’s a big thing indeed,” Sikorski said in Luxemburg on Monday.
He said that Ukraine’s government, president, and opposition have managed to build cooperation.
“I would like to warn the Ukrainian government about votes of several important EU members saying that they are not likely to make a positive decision without the settlement of the Tymoshenko issue,” the Polish minister said.
He mentioned the Netherlands, the UK, and Sweden among such countries.
Asked by Interfax-Ukraine when the EU was planning to approve the final decision regarding the signing of the Association Agreement, Sikorski said that the EU could decide on the matter even today if all conditions were fulfilled.
He also called on the Ukrainian government not to underestimate the difficulty of making a decision by the EU, as time is needed for this.
“Not much time is left and Ukraine has done so much positive that it would be a tragedy for Ukraine to fail a few hundred meters from the final straight of the marathon,” Sikorski said.
The minister also said that setting a date to make a final decision by the EU “is still under discussion.”
