You're reading: European Union calls on Ukraine again to clear obstacles in the way of bilateral relations

BRUSSELS – The European Union has again stressed the critical importance for Kyiv and Brussels to clear obstacles in the way of bilateral relations.

Such issues were in the focus of a meeting between European
Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Fule and
Ukrainian First Deputy Prime Minister Valery Khoroshkovsky in Brussels
on Monday, the Commissioner’s office in Brussels informed an
Interfax-Ukraine correspondent.

“I sincerely hope that Ukraine will demonstrate its commitment to
European values and reforms, allowing us to further develop our
relationship, to sign, ratify and implement the Association Agreement.
To this end, the conduct of the upcoming parliamentary elections, the
redress of the consequences of selective justice and further steps to
reform the judiciary and overall progress in the implementation of the
Association Agenda are critical,” Fuel said while commenting the
meeting.

According to him, the meeting provided “a good opportunity” to review
the state of EU-Ukraine relations, focusing on issues that currently
stand in the way of taking full advantage of the bilateral relationship
and moving forward on the basis of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement.

Fule stressed the critical importance for Ukraine to demonstrate a
solid commitment to the rule of law and democratic values, borne out by
concrete actions, in order to facilitate further steps towards the
signing and ratification of the Association Agreement.

He repeated that Ukraine should make every effort to dispel concerns
over politically motivated trials, addressing this issue as part of a
broader reform of the judiciary. The October parliamentary elections
should be prepared and conducted in line with international standards,
including with respect to media freedom, equal access to media and
freedom of assembly.

Fule and Khoroshkovsky exchanged views on the priority reforms set
out in the EU-Ukraine Association Agenda. They discussed, in particular,
the need to take concrete action to improve the business climate in
Ukraine, as well as Ukraine’s plans to strengthen its public finance
management system and other aspects of economic reform.

In light of recent developments the Commissioner expressed
disappointment at the enactment of amendments to the law on the
functioning of the Prosecutor’s Office, which were not consulted with
the Venice Commission and represent a missed opportunity to reform the
Prosecutor’s office in line with European standards.

He also expressed concerns about the current draft of the law
re-criminalizing defamation which raises concerns of having a negative
impact on the freedom of the media, Fule’s office said.