Brussels, 03/10/2012 (Agence Europe) - The monitoring mission on Ukraine of former president of the European Parliament, Pat Cox, and former president of Poland, Alexander Kwasniewski, will be prolonged until the end of the year, but will be suspended during the electoral period, President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz announced on Tuesday 2 October. He explained that the mission was being suspended to avoid the two special envoys being exploited. In Kwasniewski's view, these elections are a true test for Kiev and key for its future, “otherwise we have no chance of continuing the dialogue (…), of progressing” (our translation). Cox said that the fact that several opposition leaders are in prison casts a big shadow on these elections.
Schulz said that observers from the European Parliament will be present to monitor the parliamentary elections on 28 October and that members of the bureau will meet in Ukraine in the coming days.
The two special envoys have given the bureau of the presidents an interim report on their mission. Cox said that they have already undertaken seven official visits to Ukraine, plus other non-official visits - in other words, the equivalent of five working weeks. While there is still much to do - be it on the imprisoned opposition members or on the legal and judicial framework - Kwasniewski said that the continued hospitalisation of the former prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, and the release of former minister, Valeriy Ivashchenko, as well as the new penal code of procedure and the law on the public prosecutor, constitute progress. (CG/transl.fl)