“This agreement is naturally contradicting the perspective of Ukraine’s participation in the Customs Union because there are paragraphs in the association agreement that practically rule out the possibility for Ukraine to cooperate with the Customs Union member countries,” Aleksey Pushkov said at the Friday session of the Russian Lower House.
The Customs Union is a free trade organization started in 2010. It currently Unites Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, but there are plans to include more countries that once were parts of the former Soviet Union.
Pushkov was presenting the draft resolution made in reply to the European Parliament’s statement that had accused Russia of applying pressure on a number of countries, including Ukraine, over their plans to broaden cooperation with the European Union.
The Russian MP said the Ukraine-EU agreement would create a single-sided dependence of Ukraine on the EU as Ukraine will not be able to influence the development of EU directives, but would nevertheless automatically accept them as obligations.
“No one offers Ukraine to become a EU member, it is an attempt to tie this country to the European Union for a small price and with little effort, to make this country into an economic appendix. Ukraine is going to lose very seriously from these agreements,” Pushkov explained.
“We are practically talking here about establishing a semi-colonial dependence,” the parliamentarian emphasized.
A day earlier Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke at the Valdai Club international political forum and said Moscow would have to protect its markets in case Ukraine enters an association agreement with the EU. The Russian leader also said that Ukraine’s membership of the Customs Union would give Kiev better leverage in its talks with Europe.
Earlier this week the Ukrainian government approved the draft association agreement with the EU which is expected to be formally signed at the EU Summit in Lithuania in November.
rt.com
20/9/13
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EU insists Ukraine free jailed ex-premier to sign treaty...
ReplyDeleteYALTA, Ukraine: The European Union on Friday insisted that Ukraine free jailed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko if it expects to sign a deal bringing Kiev closer to Europe.
"Requests from the EU on Tymoshenko's case are still on the table," Lithuanian President Dalia Gribauskaite told reporters at a regional forum in Yalta in southern Ukraine.
"Without a solution of this question I do not see a possibility for the signing of the (association) agreement," she added.
The EU, whose rotating presidency is currently held by Lithuania, has pressed Ukraine to release Tymoshenko or at least allow her to seek medical help abroad for back problems which had kept her in hospital for most of her prison term.
In August, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych pledged to fulfil all the conditions put forward by the EU to sign the agreement, but gave no hint of a breakthrough in the dispute with Brussels over the jailing of Tymoshenko.
He reiterated Friday that he has no legal authority to free Tymoshenko as it is up the courts to decide, but added that he had not yet given a "no" answer.
"We are trying, we are looking for how to approach this most difficult issue related to Tymoshenko," he said, arguing there are pending cases against the opposition leader which "have to be answered".
Kiev is hoping to sign the Association Agreement at the EU's Eastern Partnership summit in Vilnius in November, which would be a first formal step on the road to EU membership.
Tymoshenko was sentenced in October 2011 to seven years in jail on charges of overstepping her authority while prime minister by agreeing a gas deal with Russia.
But she insists her imprisonment was ordered by Yanukovych in a bid to eliminate a dangerous opponent from political life ahead of 2015 presidential polls and her detention has soured Kiev's relations with the EU......http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/International/2013/Sep-20/232000-eu-insists-ukraine-free-jailed-ex-premier-to-sign-treaty.ashx#ixzz2fSplNDNR
20/9/13
Ukraine may face default in 2014 after signing AA with EU...
ReplyDeleteRHODES, October 4 (Itar-Tass) - Ukraine can face default in 2014 if it signs the Association Agreement with the EU, Russian presidential adviser Sergei Glazyev said.
“I say again: the Association Agreement will lead to default in Ukraine because Russia stops to provide loans. Today Ukraine’s balance of payment is based on Russian loans and investments,” Glazyev said.
“Default is inevitable and this can lead to changing power. Other people will come. The country can face social and political destabilization,” he said, adding, “We are not interested in this and Europe as well.”
“That is why it is absurd to sign the deal. It gives nothing. Moreover, it will hamper Ukraine’s movement towards integration into Russia,” Glazyev said.
“This is a very expensive project because it will take 35 billion euro to restore Ukraine’s economy after destabilization. This is an adventure, which can lead to bankruptcy of many industries in Ukraine. The republic will be unable to supply products to its market because it won’t correspond to European standards,” the presidential adviser said.
Ukraine's ruling party may lose up to 4 million voters
Ukraine’s Party of Regions may lose up to four million of voters if it signs the association agreement with the European Union, Sergei Glazyev said.
“The decision (to sign the agreement) was made without a prior informing of Russia, we have faced the fact,” he said. “Moreover, we still have not received from Ukrainian authorities the text of the agreement. We had to use the version we had taken from Brussels and had translated.”
“The Ukrainian side has been acting unwisely. This may be compared with a political suicide for Azarov’s government and for the entire Ukrainian leadership,” Glazyev said.
The presidential aide stressed the agreement “is economically unprofitable, it would not suggest social support to the nation.”
“We believe the Party of Regions and personally Viktor Yanukovich would lack support from three to four million votes after the agreement is signed.”
“There must be some hidden reasons to motivate them, which may come, perhaps, from foreign property, some assets, or some blackmail from the EU or NATO,” Glazyev added.
Russia will not reduce gas prices for Ukraine....http://www.itar-tass.com/c32/901551.html
4/10/13
Medvedev warns Ukraine of losing exclusive relations with Russia...
ReplyDeleteRussia is not jealous of Ukraine for bidding to join the European Union, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said, but advised it to ask Brussels for loans in the future.
Russia is not jealous of Ukraine for bidding to join the European Union, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said, but advised it to ask Brussels for loans in the future.
He noted that Russia had established excellent relations with the EU citing the example of the volume of trade, which is incomparable with that between Ukraine and the European Union.
At the same time, Medvedev emphasized that a decision to sign the EU-Ukraine Association agreement is Ukraine’s sovereign choice. However, he warned of consequences that Ukraine might lose advantages and benefits in relations with Russia.
“Frankly speaking, at present, we have special relations, exclusive relations with Ukraine which are based on a range of concessions and privileges that are being applied in the supply of Ukrainian products to the Russian market,” the Russian Prime Minister said.
If Ukraine is a member of another customs union and a free trade zone created with the involvement of the EU, then some other rules will be applied on the country, and According to Medvedev, Russia will have to take this into consideration.
Read more: http://indian.ruvr.ru/news/2013_11_01/Medvedev-Ukraine-relations-Russia/
1/10/13