We have done, are doing, and will do everything to ensure Ukraine’s membership in the European Union and NATO as soon as possible. European and Euro-Atlantic integration were and remain our credo and strategic goal, the achievement of which is subject to all our actions and plans. For us, the EU and NATO have never been a tribute to fashion, self-promotion, situational populism, or a straw for our political salvation, but the foundation of our policy and political program.
The conclusion of the Association Agreement with the EU, the creation of an in-depth and comprehensive free trade zone, a visa-free regime, the initiation of several sectoral integration projects, and enshrining the accession to the EU and NATO in the Constitution of Ukraine is our political and valuable heritage.
It is natural that “European Solidarity” fully shares the Resolution of the European Parliament regarding support for Ukraine, every point of it, including the one that talks about the inadmissibility of “selective restriction of the political activity of elected people’s deputies, in particular those who represent the opposition.” After all, membership in the EU, according to clear criteria, is open to countries in which the rule of law, democracy, freedom of speech, etc.
We consider the government’s reaction to the letter of the fifth President Petro Poroshenko to the European Commissioner for Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi regarding comprehensive observance of political pluralism and the rights of the opposition to be emotional and inadequate. According to the logic of the authorities, European integration is harmed not by the actions of officials who violate the rights and freedoms of Ukrainians, but by those who, for example, turn to the ECtHR or other international institutions for the protection of rights.
Unfortunately, the government in Ukraine sometimes feels absolute and impunity. It is used as a monologue and applause. It avoids dialogue with the opposition and reacts nervously to criticism. It is deaf to society, or, at least, insensitive, and against this background, many mistakes are made.
Under such conditions, we no longer have the right to remain silent. We consider it not only possible but even necessary to draw attention to the problems of Ukrainians and our European friends. Why does a democratic country need a silent opposition?
And there is too much at stake – the European future of Ukraine, which depends not on words, but on concrete actions of the authorities.
We are not at war with Russia on the outside, so that inside Ukraine it would spread the metastases of authoritarianism. That is why the moment has come when it is no longer possible to pretend that such a threat does not exist, and we must eradicate it in the bud by joint efforts with civil society.
Our information and recommendations are invariably reflected in the annual reports of the European Commission, resolutions of the European Parliament, and decisions of the European Council and the Council of the EU – especially in the conditions of preparation for the opening negotiations, where the issue of democracy is the “alpha and omega” of the speed and content of the entire process.
The European Commission expressed its position on this issue in the report on the progress of the enlargement policy, and the members of the European Parliament in the resolution in support of Ukraine, and the European Council in the decision on the Financing Mechanism of Ukraine, and the leadership of the International Democratic Union and the European People’s Party in appeals to the country’s leadership. And the authorities, as it turned out, did not understand and did not hear this.
Our offers and demands have been known for a long time.
First. Open dialogue of the authorities with society and the opposition about the military and political situation, regular meetings of the President with the leaders of the parliamentary factions, which have not been held for two years.
Second. Full coordination of efforts in the international arena, both in matters of military aid and the struggle for membership in the EU and NATO. This process requires the removal of unconstitutional restrictions on parliamentary diplomacy, which is impossible in the conditions of illegal bans on international business trips, which are politically motivated – currently, for example, those who did not vote for the anti-European law on BEB are being punished.
The third. The restoration of freedom of speech, the restoration of Ukrainian TV channels that were switched off in the spring of 2022, the openness of the authorities – the return of journalists to the parliament’s meeting hall, and the broadcasting of meetings on the Rada channel. At the same time, the closing of the censored telethon. It is financed at the expense of European taxpayers, and the standards there are non-European.
The fourth. Stopping the pressure of the security forces on the mass media, businesses, public activists, and the opposition.
Fifth. Parliamentary control over the Cabinet of Ministers, regular days of the Government, and its accountability to society.
Therefore, “European Solidarity” calls on the authorities to stop speculating on the ban on international activities of the opposition.
Today, anything that harms internal unity and undermines political stability harms Ukraine, its international image, and our survival as a democracy and a sovereign state. Only joint actions, political coordination, maximum mobilization, and mutual support, strengthened by the joint voice of the authorities and the opposition abroad, can ensure the success and victory of our state both in repelling the ongoing Russian invasion and on the way to Ukraine’s membership in the EU and NATO.
No politician should forget that the source of power is the people, and they must be accountable to them.