Ukraine is expected to sign an association agreement with the EU at the Eastern Partnership Summit, set to start in Vilnius on November 28.
Prime Minister Mykola Azarov told reporters in the Russian city of St. Petersburg that preparations for the summit were proceeding normally.
“Our plans remain unchanged,” he said.
But Tymoshenko remains a major obstacle on Ukraine’s path toward greater integration with the EU.
The ex-premier, who is an avowed political rival to President Viktor Yanukovych, has been sentenced to seven years in prison on corruption charges that she says are politically motivated.
She is now seeking medical treatment for a debilitating back condition that requires hospitalization abroad.
EU officials have said that the signing of the association agreement will be called off if Tymoshenko is not allowed to leave the country for treatment.
Despite repeated efforts over recent weeks, Ukraine’s parliament has failed to pass a law allowing convicts to travel abroad for medical treatment.
The EU trade deal could threaten Ukraine’s economic ties with Russia and other former Soviet states.
Russia has pitched its Customs Union with Belarus and Kazakhstan to Kiev and warned Ukraine that it would lose existing trade privileges if the EU deal goes through.
Azarov admitted that his country had already registered significant losses because of shrinking trade with Russia and other members of the Moscow-led post-Soviet alliance, the Commonwealth of Independent States.
“Trade turnover grew significantly in 2012, but in 2013 we have lost nearly one-quarter of our trade turnover with CIS markets,” Azarov said. “Those economic losses are significant for us, and Ukraine has been facing serious [financial] hardships lately.
Azarov said that his government’s top priority for next year was to have Russian trade barriers removed and to bring the rapidly worsening state of trade with Russia back to normal.
“It’s no coincidence that when drafting the budget, the main economic figures for 2014 will depend on whether we are able to create mutual understanding with Russia,” he said.
The Ukrainian government said in a statement that Azarov met with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on the sidelines of the CIS prime ministers’ council in St. Petersburg on Wednesday evening.
During the closed-door meeting, Azarov and Medvedev discussed various CIS deals, including access to pipelines, free trade deals for the service sector and limited export duties.
ria.ru
21/11/13
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Accord UE-Ukraine: Moscou prêt à un dialogue tripartite (Poutine)...
ReplyDeleteLa Russie est prête à un dialogue tripartite afin d'éclaircir toutes les questions relatives à une éventuelle association de l'Ukraine à l'Union européenne, a déclaré jeudi le président russe Vladimir Poutine.
"[Le président ukrainien Victor Ianoukovitch] propose de tenir des négociations à trois impliquant l'Europe, l'Ukraine et la Russie. Nous sommes prêts, mais uniquement en vue de parvenir à une décision", a souligné le dirigeant russe.
M.Poutine a expliqué qu'il était difficile de négocier des questions déjà conciliées et adoptées.
Kiev envisage de conclure en novembre avec l'UE un accord d'association prévoyant la mise en place d'une zone de libre-échange. Ce facteur a engendré des problèmes dans les rapports économiques entre l'Ukraine et la Russie, dont les échanges commerciaux bilatéraux ont chuté de 25%.
La Commission européenne a auparavant déclaré que la signature d'un accord de libre-échange avec l'UE n'empêcherait pas l'Ukraine de développer des relations économiques constructives avec l'Union douanière. Moscou a pour sa part affirmé que la conclusion d'un accord d'association avec l'UE fermerait à Kiev les portes de cette association.
La Russie a annoncé à plusieurs reprises qu'elle serait obligée de protéger ses marchés, y compris en les fermant à certaines marchandises ukrainiennes.
http://fr.ria.ru/world/20131121/199840052.html
21/11/13
Ukraine Ditches Plans for EU Deal, Turns to Russia...
ReplyDeleteKIEV, November 21 (RIA Novosti) — Ukraine’s government decided Thursday to call off the planned signing of landmark agreements with the EU that could have weakened the former Soviet nation’s bonds with Russia.
The Cabinet said in a decree that the decision was motivated by the need to consolidate economic ties with Russia and members of the Kremlin-led Customs Union trade bloc.
The stunning reversal will be greeted with dismay in the European Union, which had been hoping to steer Kiev toward closer economic integration with Europe.
Earlier in the day, Ukraine’s parliament rejected draft laws aimed at allowing jailed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko to seek medical treatment abroad, which EU officials had stipulated as a condition for the agreements to go ahead.
Tymoshenko, who is an avowed political rival to President Viktor Yanukovych, is currently serving a seven-year jail sentence on corruption charges that she insists are politically motivated.
Association agreements and free trade deals with the EU were expected to be signed next week at a summit in Vilnius.
Instead, Ukraine’s government proposed Thursday the creation of a trilateral commission between itself, Russia and the European Union to explore ways to deepen mutual ties.
The decree also ordered the resumption of an “active dialogue” with the Moscow-led Customs Union, which includes Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan.
Kiev’s volte-face is likely to be hailed as a foreign policy victory for Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has not hidden his distaste for Ukraine-EU integration.
Ukraine has come under sustained pressure from the Kremlin in recent months as diplomatic negotiations over its alignment with the EU intensified..................http://en.ria.ru/russia/20131121/184845623/Ukraine-Rejects-Laws-to-Free-Tymoshenko-Jeopardises-EU-Deal.html
21/11/13
Αναστέλλει τις Επαφές της με την Ε.Ε. η Ουκρανία...
ReplyDeleteΗ κυβέρνηση της Ουκρανίας ανακοίνωσε την Πέμπτη πως αναστέλλει τις προετοιμασίες για την ολοκλήρωση της συμφωνίας ελεύθερου εμπορίου και συνεργασίας με την Ε.Ε.
Το εν λόγω θέμα θεωρείται ότι συνδέεται άμεσα με την προμήθεια φυσικού αερίου εκ μέρους της Ρωσίας, η οποία έχει αντιδράσει έντονα στις συνομιλίες της Ουκρανίας με την Ε.Ε. Σημειώνεται ότι η Ρωσία και η Ουκρανία συμφώνησαν πρόσφατα να επαναληφθούν οι εισαγωγές φυσικού αερίου, δίνοντας τέλος στην μεταξύ τους διένεξη.
http://www.energia.gr/article.asp?art_id=76468
21/11/13