You're reading: European lawmakers: Association agreement should not be signed with opposition in jail

The European People's Party (EPP), insists that the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union should not be signed and ratified as long as opposition leaders are jail.

The European People’s Party shares the opinion of the European Parliament and EU governments, that the agreement on partnership and association between Ukraine and the EU should not be signed and ratified as long as opposition leaders are in prison and cannot take part in elections, according to a resolution adopted by the EPP Presidency at the summit in Brussels on Feb. 29 and published on the Web site of the Batkivschyna party on Thursday.

In its resolution, the EPP called on the Ukrainian government to stand by its commitment to ensure the upcoming parliamentary elections comply with international standards, with the full participation, including election campaigning, of the political figures in the opposition, and the opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko.

Posters with an image of Ukraine’s former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko behind bars and a slogan "Freedom to Ukraine" were hanging in the lobby of the buildings where the summit took place, an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent reported.