EU keeps Ukraine at arm's length as government wobbles
VALENTINA POP
04.09.2008 @ 10:23 CET
The upcoming EU-Ukraine summit is heading for embarrassment as EU states continue to hold back an accession "perspective" for Ukraine, while a fresh row between Ukrainian President, Viktor Yushchenko, and Prime Minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, may see yet another government fold.
EU diplomats on Wednesday (3 September) agreed a draft summit statement should say the EU acknowledges "the European aspirations of Ukraine" and "leaves open the way for further progressive developments in EU-Ukraine relations," AFP reports.
Ukraine has said it won't sign the deal in Evian without an EU accession statement (Photo: EUUBC)
EU states were also willing to call a new bilateral treaty an "Association Agreement" - implying deep political links - and to start a dialogue on visa-free travel. But the statement will not see the EU recognise Ukraine's "European perspective" - a nod to potential accession down the line.
Ukraine diplomats in Brussels last week said the EU-Ukraine summit in Evian, France on 9 September will have some "deliverables" in the form of a joint declaration, but that Kiev would not sign the political chapter of the new bilateral treaty without the "perspective" phrasing.
Ukraine had hoped Moscow's military intervention in fellow EU and NATO hopeful Georgia would work in its favour, with the EU at this week's Georgia summit saying it will give special "emphasis" to Ukraine relations amid fears Russia could seek to expand influence further.
Poland, the Baltic countries - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - Sweden and the UK have supported Ukraine enlargement in the past. But the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany have blocked the "perspective" wording, amid public enlargement fatigue and German concerns over Russia relations.
"The German government has taken the [Ukraine enlargement] idea on board. But it's a big country. It needs time to consider it, to discuss it with third partners and to test public opinion before making any moves," an EU official said.
Meanwhile in Kiev, the relationship between Mr Yushchenko and Ms Tymoshenko hit a new low on Wednesday, as the president threatened to organise early parliamentary elections after accusing her party of plotting an "anti-constitutional coup."
Mr Yushchenko denounced the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc for voting together with the opposition Communist and Moscow-leaning Regions Party in parliament, as well as Ms Tymoshenko's "soft stance" on Russia regarding the Georgian conflict.
His officials had earlier accused Ms Tymoshenko of making a secret deal with the Kremlin to steer the country back toward the Russian sphere following presidential elections in 16 months.
In return, Ms Tymoshenko blamed the president for breaking up the government coalition and said he was seeking popular support ahead of the presidential vote. "You have 10 days of no ultimatums, no demands, no provocations, to come back to the democratic coalition," she said in a televised statement.
The pair already had one major fall out back in 2005 when Mr Yushchenko ousted Ms Tymoshenko as prime minister in a row about corruption. But the president faces a record low approval rating in 2008, while the prime minister commands huge public support.
Serpent Island
Ukraine is also caught up in a territorial dispute in The Hague with EU member Romania over a small, rocky outcrop in the Black Sea - Serpents Island - which could be sitting on top of 100 billion cubic metres of natural gas.
The new EU member country took the row to the International Court of Justice after years of failed negotiations between Bucharest and Kiev, with Romanian diplomat Bogdan Aurescu accusing Ukraine of distorting maritime border rules to exploit de facto ownership of the zone.
Mr Aurescu says the Soviet Union illegally annexed the island and then gave it to Ukraine when Ukraine won its independence in 1991. Romania and Ukraine signed a treaty in 1997 agreeing to negotiate a new border settlement and not to exploit fossil fuels in the area for the time being.
The 15-judge tribunal is the UN's judicial arm and deals with disputes between member states. Its decisions are binding, but it has no power of enforcement.