BRUSSELS: The speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament made a vibrant plea Wednesday for his country to be named a candidate for European Union membership.
The move would bring the war-torn nation closer to the EU without guaranteeing its admittance.
Ruslan Stefanchuk, chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, told EU lawmakers that failing to give Ukraine a sign of an open door would be a clear signal to Russian President Vladimir Putin that “he can be totally going forward without any punishment.”
European heads of state and government are expected to consider Ukraine’s bid for EU candidate status at the end of June. The European Parliament already passed a resolution in favor of making Ukraine a membership candidate.
“Let’s do everything possible that on the 24th of June we’ll see a watershed day, an important day for us, and our joint great victory,” Stefanchuk said.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, is expected to deliver its opinion next week based on Ukraine’s answers to a questionnaire received in April and early May.
Ukraine currently has an association agreement with the EU, which is aimed at opening Ukraine’s markets and bringing it closer to Europe. It includes a far-reaching free trade pact.
Roberta Mestola, the president of the EU legislature, said lawmakers will continue supporting Ukraine’s effort to obtain candidate status. Metsola said reaching the step in the accession process would benefit Ukraine by furthering its integration into the region.
The 27 EU nations have been united in backing Ukraine’s resistance to Russia’s invasion, adopting unprecedented economic sanctions against Moscow since the start of the war in February.
However, leaders are divided on how quickly the EU should move to accept Ukraine as a member. Admitting a new member country requires unanimous agreement from the EU’s current members.
Before Russia’s war in Ukraine, the European Commission repeatedly expressed concern in recent years about corruption in Ukraine and the need for deep political and economic reforms.
The French government has made clear it thinks it’s unrealistic to expect Ukraine to join the EU any time soon, saying the process would take many years, “in fact probably several decades.”
The Ukrainian bid has received warm support in Eastern European countries, but EU officials have stressed the process could take years,
Speaking in Strasbourg on Wednesday, Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin backed Ukraine’s application and said he hoped EU leaders would “send the people of Ukraine a clear and positive message.”
Martin is among the EU leaders meeting at an June 23-24 summit.
But Martin says the EU “should support those looking to join in undertaking the reforms and preparations necessary.” He says Ireland’s experience is that EU “membership is transformative.”
Ukraine official makes plea for EU candidate status
https://arab.news/bfm6d
Ukraine official makes plea for EU candidate status
- European heads of state and government are expected to consider Ukraine's bid for EU candidate status at the end of June
- The European Parliament already passed a resolution in favor of making Ukraine a membership candidate
EU assembly weighs freezing US trade deal over Trump’s Greenland threats
- Signatories were mainly fellow members of Clausen’s Left Group, but also included center-left Social Democrats and Greens
- Greens lawmaker Anna Cavazzini said the only argument in favor of the deal was to bring stability
BRUSSELS: The European Parliament is considering putting on hold the European Union’s implementation of the trade deal struck with the United States in protest over threats by US President Donald Trump to seize Greenland.
The European Parliament has been debating legislative proposals to remove many of the EU’s import duties on US goods — the bulk of the trade deal with the US — and to continue zero duties for US lobsters, initially agreed with Trump in 2020.
It was due to set its position in votes on January 26-27, which the MEPs said should now be postponed.
Leading members of the cross-parliamentary trade committee met to discuss the issue on Wednesday morning and decide whether to postpone the vote. In the end, they took no decision and settled on reconvening next week.
A parliamentary source said left-leaning and centrist groups favored taking action, such as a postponement.
A group of 23 lawmakers also urged the EU assembly’s president Roberta Metsola on Wednesday to freeze work on the agreement as long as the US administration continued its threats to take control of Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark.
“If we go through and approve a deal that Trump has seen as a personal victory, while he makes claims for Greenland and refuses to rule out any manner in which to achieve this, it will be easily seen as rewarding him and his actions,” the letter drafted by Danish lawmaker Per Clausen said.
Signatories were mainly fellow members of Clausen’s Left Group, but also included center-left Social Democrats and Greens.
Greens lawmaker Anna Cavazzini said the only argument in favor of the deal was to bring stability.
“Trump’s actions show again and again that chaos is his only offer,” she said.
French lawmaker Valerie Hayer, head of the centrist Renew Europe group, said on Tuesday the EU should consider holding off a vote if Trump’s threats continued.
Many lawmakers have complained that the US trade deal is lopsided, with the EU required to cut most import duties while the US sticks to a broad rate of 15 percent.
However, freezing the deal risks angering Trump, which could lead to higher US tariffs. The Trump administration has also ruled out any concessions, such as cutting tariffs on spirits or steel, until the deal is in place.
