The signing of agreements is rarely accompanied by applause, shouting and the flashing of victory signs, but this one was years in the making and responsible for a major change in European affairs. Many MEPs were quick to show their joy when the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement was ratified simultaneously by the Ukrainian and European Parliaments […]
Schaake Demands Clarity On Ukraine Trade Deal Postponement
Marietje Schaake, MEP, (ALDE/D66), has asked European Trade Commissioner Karel de Gucht for clarity on the implementation of the Association Agreement between the EU and Ukraine. The European Parliament ratified the agreement today, but last weekend it became clear that the European Commission and the Ukrainian government agreed to postpone the implementation of the trade […]
An Apple A Day Keeps The Russians Away
European companies have started to feel the impact of the Russian import ban introduced on 7 August. The measure, which includes anything from Polish apples to Belgian pork, is Russia’s response to EU sanctions over the country’s involvement in the crisis in the Ukraine. During this week’s plenary in Strasbourg, MEPs will debate the impact […]
Schulz, “Ukraine Concerns All Europeans”
“What happens in Ukraine concerns all Europeans, because we cannot stand by and watch idly while the founding principles of the international community are being violated,” said EP president Martin Schulz during a visit to Kiev on Friday. “We have agreed on rules for states to follow when dealing with each other. These rules apply […]
Parliament Votes In Favour Of Ukraine Tariff Reductions. Radical Left Rejects Aid For Ukraine
The international trade committee of the European Parliament today voted by a large majority for the abolition of trade barriers for Ukraine. Under the proposal, the tariff reductions and the elimination of trade barriers are initially limited until 1 November 2014. The spokesman for the EPP Group in the European Parliament’s international trade committee, Daniel […]
Tymošenko – Cox Aims For Berlin Hospital Transfer
The European Parliament’s mission to Ukraine this week will do its best to have Julia Tymošenko transferred to Berlin for hospital treatment in the coming weeks, said Pat Cox, Special Envoy of the European Parliament Monitoring Mission to Ukraine. Speaking at a COSAC meeting at the Seimas, Lithuania, his presentation titled ‘Parliament Diplomacy: The EP and […]
U.S.-Ukraine Rule of Law Working Group Meets in Kyiv
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Thomas O. Melia, will lead an interagency delegation to Kyiv, Ukraine for the sixth meeting of the U.S.-Ukraine Political Dialogue/Rule of Law Working Group, October 21-25. The delegation will include Paige Alexander, Assistant Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development and Catherine Newcombe, Regional Director […]
EU Supports Ukrainian OSCE Progess, says Lithuanian Foreign Minister
The European Union welcomes, “the balanced and pragmatic approach” by Ukraine chairing the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and it fully supports Kiev’s preparations for the upcoming OSCE meeting, said Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius. Linkevičius represented the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy in the EU-OSCE meeting in Luxembourg on […]