Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-02-23-Speech-3-078"
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"en.20050223.8.3-078"2
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".
Mr President, honourable Members, ladies and gentlemen, it is a great honour and a great pleasure for me to address you here in this Chamber. The European Parliament is a symbol of democracy within the European Union and democracy is the value that unites all of us today. Democracy is the cornerstone on which our prosperity is built, as is the case with every country which has chosen the path of democracy and freedom, and for our entire continent which was enabled to build a union of free countries. I am therefore very proud to be able to address the European Parliament.
European integration is the only true path open to Ukraine. Over recent days we have already moved towards integration into the European Union. We have chosen our strategic and political path in that direction. Over and above words, we need to see action. In the past, democracy, the rule of law and even the media were very difficult in Ukraine. There was a lot of corruption. That forced the people out into the streets and into the squares to call for better conditions, for internal reforms to take place and for us to move towards the European Union. Ukraine and the European Union should not forfeit this single and unique opportunity.
We appreciate your commitment to grasping this historic opportunity. By adopting its resolution on 13 January this year the European Parliament has shown how visionary it is by recommending to the Council, the Commission and the Member States that they support Ukraine in its European aspirations. I believe that the extension of the Ukraine action plan is an extremely positive gesture. We, in Ukraine, will do everything we can to implement the provisions of the action plan from our side. I would emphasise once again how we will do our utmost to achieve this. It is one of the most important tasks ahead for my government. Ukraine will do its utmost so that we can now conduct a joint analysis, enabling us to show how much progress we have made. I hope that in the year 2007 it will be possible for us at the end of the action plan to begin negotiations for membership and that we could open up the process of negotiations for membership in that way.
The neighbourhood policy already seems to have been overtaken by events. The scope and dimension of our relations should be based on the fact that Ukraine is an integral part of a united Europe already.
Once again I emphasise that we feel that our cooperation with the European Union is situated very much within the framework of the action plan, but going beyond the neighbourhood policy and we are proposing that, as of now, we undertake actions with a view to the future membership of Ukraine in the European Union. We know the position of our partners who propose that different scenarios be developed. We feel that it is important for our own aspirations to be supported.
My final objective and that of my country and my government is for Ukraine to join the European Union. The final outcome of the conclusion of the action plan, which we are fully prepared to implement faster than was originally planned, could then allow for the creation of an association agreement.
Ukraine can make an official request on the basis of Article 49 of the European Union Treaty, and we can do our utmost to meet the Copenhagen criteria.
I would emphasise once again that we understand that most of the work for joining the European Union will fall to us. We are the ones who have to make the effort, and if we cannot implement quick reforms, the European Union will not be able to help us. Nobody can do that work for us. My government has already drawn up an action plan for the next five years, with the ultimate objective of our joining the European Union.
The Deputy Prime Minister responsible for European cooperation is currently drawing up all the detailed aspects of that action plan. We shall be doing our best to ensure that we have a transparent economy, an economy that works, to alleviate taxes, fight against corruption, and ensure that the judiciary and the media are independent. During my presidency, there will be no talk of the infringement of human rights in Ukraine. Our ambition for European integration requires us to make progress in the reforms that I have just listed.
These are important objectives for us and clearly it is going to require much work to adapt our society. We will have to adapt our administrative structures to European standards to ensure that people shoulder their responsibilities. We want the people of Ukraine to trust the administration again and for them to understand our policies. We will be introducing social reforms, reforms in the areas of education and training, and social protection. One of the most important priorities is the reform of the judiciary. We will be fighting against drug trafficking and illegal immigration and doing our utmost to ensure that our judicial system works properly, based on European standards, and with regard to human rights and respect for the dignity of human beings.
I am convinced that we can avoid discrimination of any kind being tolerated in our society and in our fight against the scourges with which we are all familiar in Europe. Ukraine will continue to fight for the rights of its citizens to become true European citizens, for them to feel that they belong to the European family. We shall be doing everything we can to implement things in a meticulous way at all levels, in the economy, in social life and in every area of society. We need to ensure that all this is done with a European vision and in a European spirit.
I am also very proud to be able to be representing a country that has created a new symbol within the European continent. The Berlin Wall was pulled down and our Orange Revolution too became a new symbol within a democratic Europe. All this means that totalitarianism will no longer be possible on our continent. Our people were able to choose the path of freedom and truth, showing that they were able to fight and to do their utmost to live in a Europe which is united and free.
There is very much a European philosophy underpinning my work and the work of my government. I can show you that my government will be moving from words to deeds, and the practical support of the European Union in these endeavours will only be effective if that is the case.
Now the definitive choice of Europe cannot be refuted by anybody really. It is the only path open to us to bring us closer to the European Union. It is now time for a decisive step to be taken also vis-à-vis Ukraine. The Atlantic Alliance is something that will further assist the creation of civil society, the rule of law and respect for human rights in my country during my presidency. We are more interested than anybody in developing our relations also with the Russian Federation, our big neighbour. We do not see our moving towards Europe as a problem for Russia because it will help to bring the Russian Federation itself closer to Europe. Nobody can say that Ukraine moving towards Europe could prevent us having closer cooperation with our Russian neighbours.
Do not believe those who say that Ukraine moving into European structures is against the interests of Russia. I am convinced that this is not the case and, in fact, the opposite is true. If Ukraine were a member of the European Union and NATO, it would not mean that we would use that membership against the interests of Russia and the Russian people. A stable Ukraine, just as a stable Russia, is something that should be considered as guarantors for our common and shared values.
As far as our cooperation with the Russian Federation is concerned, there will be a new regional policy to develop that. As far as concrete actions are concerned, we have already begun to undertake such actions with the European Union aimed at a peaceful settlement of the Transnistria dispute. We feel that this is a way that we will be able to help to contribute to European values becoming rooted in our region.
Transfrontier cooperation, energy networks and the like will become ways of fleshing out our cooperation in concrete terms, from Baku to the western frontiers of the European Union. In this way we can bring European standards into our region. This is clearly one of our priorities. We feel that this is the only vision that will enable my country properly to meet these aspirations.
Dear friends, nothing is guaranteed. We have to defend our common values on a day-to-day basis. We have to build jointly the walls of the house within which our peoples live. Unless a house has solid foundations it will collapse. And as it says in the Bible: a house divided against itself cannot stand. It is the strength of Europe that is to be found in this unity. You, yourselves, have been the witnesses to the emergence of this new colour on the European map - the colour orange. You know that Ukraine can also form part of the future of Europe.
The time has come now for us to work hard; the time has come now for us to take concrete measures. It is not going to be easy for us to do this, but I know that, by going together down this path, in this direction, we will be able to achieve our final goal. Thank you very much.
The borders of Europe now extend from Lisbon to beyond Kiev. We have chosen the European civilisation. It is not just a question of geography, it is a question of our spiritual values, of our shared moral values too.
In my country we have seen the President elected democratically for a second time and this time it has happened in a transparent and democratic way. Democracy won the day even though it cost the people of my country and me myself a lot of effort. This victory became possible because we saw the development of a proper civil society in Ukraine. Journalists, politicians, businessmen, judges, public servants, all became mobilised, thanks to the establishment of what is almost a new nation, that is to say Ukraine. You in the European Parliament should consider yourselves the godfathers and godmothers of that newly-born democratic Ukraine.
During those unforgettable days of the Orange Revolution your support was of great encouragement, a great symbol for us, helping us in our struggle against the fear we knew during the month of December, which was a very difficult month to live through. Here in the European Parliament we heard, we understood, that a new democratic society was possible within Ukraine. A new page of the European history book was being turned.
In true Ukrainian fashion I would like to thank you for your support and for your struggle for our freedom. Thank you, all of you.
Dear friends, we are here together. Ukraine still needs to do much to become a full member of the European family but we have already attained our main objective. We are now united by shared values. We have a shared history. We have shared aspirations. These things unify us and this feeling of unity is so much more important than mere statements that people make.
My country today has embarked upon a path of new reforms. This process reminds me of the process of making bread: you need good ingredients, you need hard work. When the dough is ready it then depends on how you shape it for it to become a good loaf. For us in Ukraine, our objective for this bread is that it be shaped by the new standards and new values adopted in accordance with European standards and values."@en1
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"President of Ukraine"1
"Yushchenko,"1
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