Berlin blocks the ratification of the EU/Ukraine Association Agreement
7th May 2012Concerned about the fate of Ukrainian opposition leader, Yulia Tymoshenko, Guido Westerwelle, the German Foreign Minister, threatened on 2nd May to prevent the ratification of the EU/Ukraine Association Agreement. In an interview on German television channel ZDF he conditioned the ratification of the text by the respect of the principles of the rule of law in Ukraine. Guido Westerwelle also reminded Kyiv, in an interview in the German daily, Bild, that as a member of the Council of Europe, Ukraine had committed to respecting human rights. Leonid Kojara, Deputy Chair of the Regions Party of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych reacted swiftly and threatened Germany with economic retaliation.
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