15 February 2011, 12:11
Volodymyr Lytvyn, Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, calls for launching EURONEST, the Parliamentary Component of the Eastern Partnership
"The Eastern Partnership should have been launched long ago," V.Lytvyn stated at the opening of the 5th meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of Ukraine and the Republic of Poland on Tuesday. "The policy of neighbourhood seems to have been replaced with the Eastern Partnership as ‘a retention pond´ for the states that belong to Europe in geographical, mental and historical respects," he stated. "I mean Ukraine in the first instance."
The Head of the Ukrainian Parliament emphasized that Ukraine agreed to participate in the Eastern Partnership, and considered it as a valuable supplement to the bilateral contacts with the European Union and EU member states. "However, the Eastern Partnership needs crisis therapy even before it is launched. First of all, political self-organization of the Eastern Partnership should be improved, and its financial support should be provided", V. Lytvyn declared.
According to V.Lytvyn, The Verkhovna Rada is interested in the parliamentary component of the Eastern Partnership and its further activity. He announced that due to certain issues concerning participation of some countries in the parliamentary dimension of the Eastern Partnership, "we have suggested Ukraine as a mediator between the European Parliament and Belarus as we are aware of the fact that isolation is the easiest way that would yield no results. We expect this initiative of the Ukrainian Party to be supported", V. Lytvyn stated.