Strasbourg, 06/04/2006 (Agence Europe) - The elections of 26 March in Ukraine were a great success, despite some minor problems and it is now a matter of helping consolidate the democratic process launched by the “Orange Revolution”, by helping the country carry its reform agenda forward. The Secretary of State Hans Winkler, speaking on behalf of the Austrian Presidency, also said that the situation had therefore created a situation that opened the way forward to a new kind of agreement with Ukraine. Benita Ferrero-Waldner speaking for the Commission agreed and said that there would be another offer for an “intensified” agreement, and accession to the WTO would hold the possibility of developing a free trade zone.
The elections in Ukraine appeared, according to British Conservative Charles Tannock, returning from a visit to Kiev, more democratic than those in his country. He pointed to the identity checks and the absence of the postal vote (the latter increases the risk of fraud). Tannock said that the only difficulty came from the enthusiasm of voters, which sometimes created queues at voting stations. Mr Tannock said that the possibility of Union accession was “some way off” but he was convinced that an association agreement would “ideally” be the right formula. 77% of Ukrainians went to the polls, explained Marek Siwiec from Poland, speaking on behalf of the Socialist group, who added that they now needed to support the formation of a strong and stable government coalition. He said that the ruling classes in the country ought to learn the art of compromise and concentrate on what unites them rather than what divides them. Lithuanian Liberal Birutis Sarunas said that they should help the Ukrainians find the European family and rid themselves of the Soviet legacy. Michal Kaminski (UEN, Poland) agreed but said that they should not interfere in the country's internal affairs. German Green Rebecca Harms explained that the high turnout was a shock if they compared it to Germany. She called for them to not stick to ideas expressed by Commissioner Verheugen, who previously asserted that Ukraine would not be in the Union in twenty years time. Ms Ferrero-Waldner provided assurances that although neighbourhood policy did not include accession as the final result, the Commission would “not slide into routine” in its relationship with Ukraine. Several MEPs called for accession possibilities to be included, notably those from new Member States, but only if the necessary reforms were carried out.
On Thursday the EP adopted a common resolution form all the political groups, except the Independence and Democracy group, in which it highlighted the fact that the elections of 26 March proved that Ukraine was “firmly committed along the road of democratic maturity”. It also called on the Ukrainian government to once again do all it could to ensure that the democratic process was “irreversible”. Parliament said that the EU should decide on another “reinforcement of measures included in the action plan of the European Neighbourhood Policy that aimed to accompany the development of democracy in Ukraine”. Parliament also wants an agreement “for facilitating the granting of visas between the EU and Ukraine with the ultimate aim of a visa-free system”. The EP has observed that the current partnership and cooperation agreement will expire in 2008 and urges the Commission to begin negotiations for an association agreement with the country. It also calls on “all of Ukraine's neighbours to fully respect the democratic choice of the Ukrainian people and refrain from any economic or other pressure that could affect” these developments. By adopting a Socialist amendment, Parliament calls on the new government to help find a solution to the problem of Transnistria (Moldova: see EUROPE 9154).