Brussels, 07/04/2016 (Agence Europe) - It will be for the Dutch government of Mark Rutte to decide what happens now, following his citizens' rejection of the association agreement between the European Union and Ukraine, in the consultative referendum held on Wednesday 6 April, the European Commission comments.
“Sad” is the word used by a Commission spokesperson to describe the emotional state of President Jean-Claude Juncker after the preliminary results were published. These left no room for error: the Dutch overwhelmingly rejected the agreement (64%), which only the Netherlands has not yet ratified. As the turnout requirement of 30% was met, the referendum is valid.
The referendum may only be consultative, but it puts the Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, in a delicate position, along with his European partners. Indeed, as the Commission pointed out on Thursday, this agreement has been ratified by 27 member states plus the European Parliament and has entered into force provisionally, following a unanimous decision of the Council. Juncker went on to describe the stakes as extremely high, given that the Dutch 'no' opens “the door to a major continental crisis”, he is quoted as saying in January (see EUROPE 1466).
Today, the Commission takes the view that “it is now first and foremost for the government of the Netherlands to analyse the outcome (of the referendum: Ed) and decide on the course of action”, said its spokesperson, Margaritis Schinas, who took pains to stress that the European institution remained “strongly committed to the development of its relations with Ukraine”.
What will Rutte do? The definitive results of the referendum are expected to be announced within a few days, but he has already said that he would enter into consultations “step-by-step” with the members of the Parliament and his European partners, which could take “days or weeks”. As early as Wednesday evening, he said that it would be impossible for his country to ratify the agreement as it stands, reports Reuters.
The outcome of the referendum was as eagerly awaited in London, Kiev and Moscow as it was in The Hague and Brussels. The British Prime Minister, David Cameron, said that he hoped that the results of the Dutch referendum would “not affect” the one to be held in the UK towards the end of June on the country's membership of the EU, as it appears that many Dutch people wanted to express their views on “Europe” rather than on relations between the EU and Ukraine.
The Ukrainian President, Petro Poroshenko, was in reassuring mood on Thursday, stating that his country would continue to move towards the EU. “I firmly believe that strategically, this event is not an obstacle to Ukraine's European path”, he said, stressing the consultative nature of a referendum that was designed as an “attack on the unity of Europe”. “Under any circumstances, we will continue to implement the association agreement with the European Union, including a deep and comprehensive free trade agreement”, he added. The Russian Prime Minister, Dmitri Medvedev, saw evidence in the results of the vote that the Europeans are calling into question the “Ukrainian political system”. (Original version in French by Jan Kordys)