UPN, Alm.del - 2013-14 - Bilag 163: Konklusioner vedrørende Ukraine fra mødet i Det Europæiske Råd 20.-21.03.14, SN 28/14

The European Union supports the Ukrainian people and their right to choose their own future.The European Union stands by the Ukrainian government in its efforts to stabilise Ukraineand undertake reforms. In this context the European Union will pursue further efforts with theinternational community to assist Ukraine.

The European Union, its Member States and Ukraine will sign the political provisions of theAssociation Agreement. The European Union and its Member States are committed to signthe remainder of the Association Agreement and Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area,which together with the political provisions constitute a single instrument. The EuropeanCouncil agrees that the first meeting in the political dialogue as envisaged under theAgreement should take place in April. The European Council urges the Council and theEuropean Parliament to swiftly adopt the proposal for temporarily removing customs duties,so called Autonomous Trade measures, on Ukrainian exports to the European Union.

Restoring macroeconomic stability in Ukraine is an immediate priority. The Ukrainiangovernment needs to embark swiftly on an ambitious programme of structural reforms,including the fight against corruption and enhancing transparency of all fiscal operations. TheEuropean Council urges the Council to rapidly agree on macro-financial assistance andunderlines that an agreement with the IMF is critical to enable this assistance. EU MemberStates agree to coordinate their positions in the IMF regarding the conditions for assistance toUkraine. The European Council welcomes the establishment of a focal point for coordinationof efforts which should underpin the structural transition in Ukraine with participation of theinternational community and international financial institutions.

The European Union commends the measured response shown so far by Ukraine. TheEuropean Council welcomes the Ukrainian government's commitment to ensure therepresentative nature and inclusiveness of governmental structures, reflecting regionaldiversity, to ensure the full protection of the rights of persons belonging to nationalminorities, to undertake constitutional reform, to investigate all human rights violations andacts of violence and to fight extremism. In this context the European Union encourages thegovernment of Ukraine to ensure that the Presidential election on 25 May will be free and fair.

The European Union remains committed to uphold the sovereignty and territorial integrity ofUkraine. The European Council does not recognise the illegal referendum in Crimea, which isin clear violation of the Ukrainian Constitution. It strongly condemns the illegal annexation ofCrimea and Sevastopol to the Russian Federation and will not recognise it. The EuropeanCouncil asks the Commission to evaluate the legal consequences of the annexation of Crimeaand to propose economic, trade and financial restrictions regarding Crimea for rapidimplementation.

In the light of this and in the absence of any steps towards de-escalation the European Councilagrees to expand the list of individuals to be subject to visa ban and asset freeze. TheEuropean Council decides to cancel the next EU-Russia Summit and notes that MemberStates will not hold bilateral regular summits for the time being. In addition, the EuropeanCouncil and the Member States support the upcoming G7 countries' meeting in The Hague.They also support the suspension of negotiations over Russia's joining the OECD and IEA.

The European Council firmly believes that there is no place for the use of force and coercionto change borders in Europe in the 21st century. The Russian actions are in clear breach of theHelsinki process, which in the past 40 years has contributed to overcoming divisions inEurope and building a peaceful and united continent. The European Council deplores thatRussia has still not taken steps to de-escalate the crisis and that negotiations between Ukraineand the Russian Federation have still not started. It urges that an agreement be promptlyreached on an OSCE mission to be deployed in Ukraine as soon as possible, in order to helpstabilise the situation. In that context, the European Council asks the High Representative tourgently draw up plans for an EU contribution to facilitate the work of the OSCE mission. Inthe absence of an agreement in the coming days on a credible OSCE mission, the EU willdraw up an EU mission.

The European Union has a special responsibility for peace and stability in Europe. It willremain at the forefront of efforts to facilitate and engage in a meaningful dialogue involvingUkraine and Russia, including through the establishment of a multilateral mechanism, with aview to finding a political solution.

The European Council recalls that any further steps by the Russian Federation to destabilisethe situation in Ukraine would lead to additional and far reaching consequences for relationsin a broad range of economic areas between the European Union and its Member States, onthe one hand, and the Russian Federation, on the other hand. In this respect, the EuropeanCouncil asks the Commission and the Member States to prepare possible targeted measures.

The European Union reconfirms its objective to further strengthen the political associationand economic integration with Georgia and the Republic of Moldova. We confirm our aim tosign the Association Agreements, including the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas,which we initialled in Vilnius last November, no later than June 2014.