Ukraine in 64th NATO PA annual session in Halifax: Weekend’s round-up
18 November 2018, 14:45
On November 17, the First Vice-Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Iryna Herashchenko together with Iryna Friz, Head of the Permanent Parliamentary Delegation to NATO, and other members of the Ukrainian Parliament, as part of the delegation took part in the 64th Annual Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Halifax, Canada.
They met briefly with Rasa Jukneviciene, the President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and thanked for her joint Donbas visit on November 9 with the Ukrainian Parliament Chairman A.Parubiy to see the town of Shyrokyne on the line of delimitation or - the clash line.
“Your visit has flagged we are at one in our struggle. From the Assembly’s side, this is a sizeable support to our fight for restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty,” underlined I.Herashchenkko at the end of the meeting with R. Jukneviciene.
The NATO Halifax session (November 17-20) is to review a variety of resolutions, including those relating to Russia’s external policy.
“We hanker after thorough documenting all the threats Russia brings against Ukraine - starting from holding the sham election in the occupied Donbas and ending with the militarization processes over the Crimea accompanied with escalation of the conflict around the Sea of Azov - in appropriate resolutions of NATO,” emphasized Iryna Herashchenko.
Iryna Herashchenko thanked the Ukrainian diaspora for restoring historical memory of the Holodomor tragedy of the Ukrainian people
While in Halifax, Canada, the First Deputy Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Iryna Herashchenko met on November 17 with Pavlo Hrod (Paul Grod), UWC Vice President and the National President of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, and representatives of the Ukrainian diaspora in Canada. She thanked them all for the restoration of memory about the Holodomor tragedy of the Ukrainian people. The politician then also briefed about the security and humanitarian situation in the Donbas.
The parties talked over the state of play in the trade and economic cooperation between the counties, including the context of the free trade zone. The need to intensify inter-parliamentary cooperation between Ukraine and Canada – through the agency of parliamentary friendship groups notably - was also emphasized.
The First Vice-Speaker invited friends from Canada to visit the country to monitor Ukraine’s 2019 elections.
“We call on Canada to apply heavier sanctions over the Russian Federation for the Kremlin-induced sham election held in the occupied Crimea and the blockage in swapping hostages and the Kremlin’s political prisoners,” – Iryna Herashchenko
Together with Iryna Friz, Head of the Permanent Parliamentary Delegation to NATO, who leads the current Ukrainian delegation to Canada, and other members of the Ukrainian Parliament, the First Vice-Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Iryna Herashchenko met on November 17 with Borys Wrzesnewskyj, a member of the Canadian Parliament, a co-chair of the Canada-Ukraine friendship group and Head of the Canadian Permanent Parliamentary Delegation to NATO.
Ukrainian parliamentarians called on Canada to make the press of sanctions upon the Russian Federation heavier through holding the fake election in the Donbas, illegal detention of hostages and Kremlin’s political prisoners in the occupied Donbas, Crimea and the Russian Federation, as well as the militarization of the Crimean peninsula together with further deterioration of the security situation in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. They also called on Canada to support Ukraine’s fight against the realization of the Kremlin’s political project the Nord Stream 2.
The members of the Ukrainian Parliament invited representatives of the Canadian delegation to partake in observation of the parliamentary and presidential elections in Ukraine in 2019.
During the meeting, the interlocutors also paid particular attention to the military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine and the problematics of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security.
"Canada advocates for strengthening the role of women in peacekeeping processes and peacekeeping missions. We are in the same position and do support all projects aimed at strengthening the role of women in peacekeeping processes, supporting women who suffered from the conflict in the Donbas," said I. Herashchenko.