EU: Politics, not translation delays, holding up association agreement with Ukraine

The chances of Ukraine signing an association agreement with the European Union are not as close as Ukrainian authorities are saying.

Aside from temporary technical obstacles, Brussels, the 27-nation bloc’s administrative capital, is putting out the message that Ukraine has to meet the democratic prerequisites if the nation wants to align itself with the EU.

Ukraine’s Ambassador to the EU Kostyantyn Yeliseyev said last month that the signing of the association agreement is not yet scheduled as Brussels is busy translating the 1,200-page document into 21 official EU languages.

While it is true that both Ukraine and the EU are currently in the final stages of translating the deal into national languages, that’s not the holdup. The EU is expected to complete the translation by the end of the year. The political situation under President Viktor Yanukovych, including the imprisonment of ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, is the sticking point.

The association agreement, part of which including a free trade zone, could move Ukraine closer to the EU, which is Kyiv's top foreign policy priority. The agreement was initialed earlier this year. In order to take full force, the deal has to be signed by the EU and Ukrainian leadership and then ratified in all EU countries and in Ukrainian parliament.

Yesileyev said the agreement's translation will be done in a few months and sought to assure that the signing of the agreement is not under threat. “Signing of the agreement will take place right after technical finishing, since it is in the interests of Ukraine and the EU,” Yeliseyev said in a televised interview on Channel 5.

However, the press service of the EU delegation in Kyiv, in response to questions by the Kyiv Post, wrote: “Ukraine’s performance, notably in relation to respect for common European values and the rule of law, will be of crucial importance for the speed of its political association and economic integration with the EU, including in the context of signing and concluding the association agreement.

The EU pointed three areas where Ukraine still has to show progress in order to conclude the agreement include holding the Oct. 28 “parliamentary elections in line with international standards, the address the consequences, and prevent recurrence of selective justice, and progress on the reform agenda, as set out in the association agenda.”

Yanukovych has drawn the West’s criticism for jailing his political opponents and reversing democracy in the country.

As a result, the EU limited contacts with Ukrainian leadership on the highest level. Only Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski is not shy about shaking hands with Yanukovych. Poland fears that Ukraine might slip into Russia's orbit if Brussels does not stay actively engaged with Kyiv.

Another sign of sour relations with the West is the fact that the date for the annual EU-Ukraine summit in Brussels, which normally takes place every year between September and December, has not been set.

On Oct. 17, the EU delegation in Kyiv said the summit will most likely take place in early 2013, saying the Oct. 28 parliamentary election in Ukraine caused delays.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14