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Editor's note: What follows is the English-language translation of remarks made by President Viktor Yanukovych during the opening session of parliament on Feb. 1

Dear parliamentarians! !

I congratulate you on the beginning of a regular session of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. would like to say a few words at the beginning of the work of the Parliament in 2011.First of all, I would like to say that the work will be very intense.And those steps that we will do with you will be fateful, or perhaps even historic.The Ukrainian nation will make an assessment of these steps.Working together, we will continue to reform the laws, so that Ukraine finally stepped on the course of modernization of our society and formalization of the association with the EU. Read the full speech here.