Press release 27 March 2013

Hopes are high that Ukraine will sign the Association Agreement, including the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, with the EU at the Eastern Partnership Summit to be held in Vilnius on 28-29 November 2013 during the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the EU. This was confirmed today at the meeting in the Seimas between Gediminas Kirkilas, Deputy Speaker of the Seimas and Chair of the Committee on European Affairs, and Valerii Zhovtenko, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine in Lithuania.

“The fact that Ukraine has taken important steps at the highest level towards signing the Association Agreement is a very good sign, indicating that Ukraine is serious about its prospects of EU membership. Therefore, Lithuania welcomes the Decree of the President of Ukraine and the parliamentary statement. I believe that signing the Association Agreement in Vilnius this autumn would encourage Ukraine to move faster towards consolidation of democracy. In addition, the whole of Europe would benefit from the destruction of more of the remaining economic and ideological barriers preserved since the end of the cold war,” Mr Kirkilas said.

On 22 February 2013, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a joint declaration of political parties in support of the country’s European integration. On 12 March 2013, the Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych signed the Decree on immediate action to be taken by the Cabinet of Ministers, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Commerce and Economic Development and the National Security and Defence Council in order to sign these agreements in 2013.

In addition, Ukraine is expected to promptly and effectively begin addressing the issues of selective justice in the cases of Yulia Tymoshenko, former Prime Minister of Ukraine, and Yuri Lutshenko, former Minister of the Interior.

“Undoubtedly commendable is the tripartite Inter-parliamentary Assembly of Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine and the multifaceted institutional cooperation in general,” said Mr Kirkilas, referring to the fifth session of the Assembly of Members of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, the Sejm and Senate of the Republic of Poland, and the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine held in Warsaw on 25-27 March 2013 and attended by Vydas Gedvilas, Speaker of the Seimas. Concurrently, the Commission for Cooperation between Lithuania and Ukraine on European Integration had its ninth meeting in Trakai on 25 March 2013.

The prerequisite for signing the Association Agreement is Ukraine’s progress in three areas: eliminating shortcomings in the electoral process, dealing with justice issues and implementation of reform under the jointly negotiated Association Agenda. It is very important that Ukraine makes some real progress on the above criteria by May 2013, since this will allow for preparing the Association Agreement for signature during the EU summit in Vilnius.

Morta Vidūnaitė, Adviser to Gediminas Kirkilas, Deputy Speaker of the Seimas, tel: +370 5 239 6278, e-mail: [email protected]