Romania supports Ukraine’s European path

Ukraine has a special place on Bucharests diplomatic agenda

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Bogdan Matei, 22.04.2016, 13:28

The Romanian Parliament, Government and Presidency have unanimously condemned the annexation by Russia of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea as well as the pro-Moscow armed rebellion in Donbas (east) and have reiterated their support for the observance of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The avowed pro-western orientation of the current administration in Kiev has been the focus of the recent bilateral dialogue on Ukraine’s European integration aspirations. On a visit to Bucharest, on Thursday, the Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko received assurances from his Romanian counterpart, Klaus Iohannis, that Romania was ready to support Ukraine in the process of reforms necessary for complying with the commitments made upon signing the association and free trade agreements with Brussels in 2014.

The Romanian President believes that Ukraine’s European and euro-Atlantic path is a solid basis for making substantial progress also in the bilateral relation.

Klaus Iohannis: “I have assured the Ukrainian President of Romania’s staunch and consistent support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence. Romania is ready to support Ukraine in the process of internal reforms necessary for complying with the commitments made in the process of political association with the EU”.

In turn, President Poroshenko said that they had to make the best of the opportunities offered by the free trade areas between Ukraine and the EU, while continuing talks on energy interconnection, which would diminish Kiev’s dependence on Russian gas. He also talked about the efficiency of the anti-corruption fight in his country, an essential prerequisite for the country’s rapprochement to the West.

Petro Poroshenko: “We have proved to have a firm approach of the fight against corruption and have taken decisive steps in this regard. The European Commission decision regarding the visa waiver for the Ukrainian citizens proves that Ukraine has already implemented 140 points on the list of reforms, which was a sine qua non for making such a decision, and a great part of these reforms were related to the anti-corruption fight. I am convinced that the efficiency of the anti-corruption fight in Ukraine is critical for businesses, for the reform of the judiciary as well as for other domains that help the state develop”.

At bilateral level, the two heads of state have signed an agreement stipulating the re-launch of the proceedings of the joint presidential Committee and the boosting of economic relations. At the same time, President Iohannis has recalled that 60 thousand Ukrainians who live in Romania benefit from financial aid provided by the state, worth 1.6 million euros per year, and underlined that Kiev had to pay more attention to the wishes of the almost 500 thousand Romanians living in Ukraine.