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Eastern Europe
June 2, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 18
Ukraine should help converge economic policy, legislation and regulation in areas like labour rights, visa-free movement, and exchange of information and staff in the justice sphere.
On May 30, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said the path to the ratification of the agreement turned out to be “long and much harder” than the Ukrainians had imagined at the beginning of this process. “Why so? The Kremlin, contaminated
by chronic anti-Ukrainian sentiment, has been hindering every our step,” Poroshenko explained. “It has used all the available resources: money, propaganda, lies, mischief-making, intelligence structures and influence groups.”
According to the Ukrainian president, which has been locked in a bitter military and trade conflict with Moscow since Russia’s seizure of Crimea
in 2014, anti-European populist forces inside the EU “have been playing along using the existent bureaucratic hooks and making up new ones”.
“All this had a single purpose – to prevent ratification of the agreement, bury it and, thereby terminate Ukraine’s heading on reunification with our European family,” Poroshenko said.
The ratification of the document happened
after the EU gave final approval to a visa-free travel regime for Ukrainian citizens travelling to the EU on non-working visits. As of next month, Ukrainian citizens with a biometric passport travelling to the EU for up to 90 days in any 180- day period for business, tourist or family purposes will no longer need a visa.
“Entry into force of the Association Agreement, free trade area and visa-free regime with the
EU that will start in exactly 10 days are crucially important on our way to a united Europe,” Poroshenko said, pointing out that the first year of temporary application of the trade pact led to a 24% boost in the country’s exports to the EU.
Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister responsible for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, said on the same day that the ratification of the agreement by the Senate was “a wise and far-sighted” decision made by Dutch lawmakers. “Final ratification of [the agreement is an] important victory of progress over populism,” she tweeted.
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March 31, 2017 www.intellinews.com
Bulgaria’s kingmaker parties to hold GERB
to ransom
bne IntelliNews
The centre-right Citizens for European Develop- ment of Bulgaria (GERB) might have won the snap parliamentary elections held on March 26, but the party is heading for tough negotiations with possible partners to gain a large enough majority to form a government, and will most likely be forced to make big compromises to stay in power.
Central Europe starts to tot up Brexit fallout
bne IntelliNews
Central European states expressed regret that the UK is leaving the EU as London triggered the Ar- ticle 50 withdrawal clause on March 29. They also quickly moved to start totting up the direct costs.
The economic effects of Brexit on Central Eu- rope are hard to pinpoint given the wide range of
Two smaller groups in the parliament – the na- tionalist United Patriots coalition and the populist Volya (Will) party – have already said they will pre- sent a united front in talks with GERB. They have also indicated they are willing to work with the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), the runner-up in
See page 2
TmhaejoVrispeogwreardsr.egion will be hard hit by the loss of their closest ally amongst the bloc's
potential scenarios under which the UK will exit. However, most suggest the damage will be limited by modest direct trade ties.
In political terms, the Visegrad region will be
See page 3