Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Wall Street Journal
September 10, 2008
Pg. 9
By David Gauthier-Villars
PARIS -- The European Union said it would build closer economic and political ties with Ukraine but stopped short of inviting its neighbor to join the 27-nation bloc, despite hopes in Kiev that Russia's incursion into Georgia would prompt a stronger signal of European support.
After a meeting in Paris with Ukraine President Viktor Yushchenko, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who holds the rotating presidency of the EU, said both sides would finalize an "association agreement" by March 2009 to gradually eliminate trade barriers and travel restrictions.
The EU's cautious step reflects the limits of what some of its most important members are willing to do to challenge Moscow on behalf of its neighbors. Germany and France have long opposed giving any guarantee of eventual membership to Ukraine, a nation of some 46 million that would have a major impact on budgets and power-distribution in the EU.
At a news conference with Mr. Yushchenko and EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso, Mr. Sarkozy summarized the EU's position toward Ukraine as "this is the maximum we can do."
Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, Ukraine has tried to free itself from Russian tutelage. Although Ukraine has a large Russian ethnic minority, Mr. Yushchenko was elected four years ago on the promise that he would drive his country toward EU membership by 2020.
After Russia unilaterally recognized the independence of two Georgian separatist territories last month, it has been widely suggested that Moscow may covet other parts of its former empire, such as parts of Ukraine -- though Russia has dismissed the idea. In early 2006, however, Moscow showed it could punish Kiev for its aspirations to join the West, severing natural-gas deliveries to Ukraine for several days.
Mr. Yushchenko said Tuesday he wanted to renegotiate with Russia a set of rules governing the use of the Black Sea Fleet, a group of Russian warships anchored in the Ukraine city of Sebastopol.
Ukraine didn't do itself any favors last week, when the government entered yet another political crisis. Mr. Yushchenko withdrew his party from the pro-Western coalition government, saying that Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko had become too close to a pro-Russian opposition party.
Asked at Tuesday's news conference whether he continued to nurture hope Ukraine would join the EU one day, Mr. Yushchenko said: "We are patient."
September 10, 2008
Pg. 9
By David Gauthier-Villars
PARIS -- The European Union said it would build closer economic and political ties with Ukraine but stopped short of inviting its neighbor to join the 27-nation bloc, despite hopes in Kiev that Russia's incursion into Georgia would prompt a stronger signal of European support.
After a meeting in Paris with Ukraine President Viktor Yushchenko, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who holds the rotating presidency of the EU, said both sides would finalize an "association agreement" by March 2009 to gradually eliminate trade barriers and travel restrictions.
The EU's cautious step reflects the limits of what some of its most important members are willing to do to challenge Moscow on behalf of its neighbors. Germany and France have long opposed giving any guarantee of eventual membership to Ukraine, a nation of some 46 million that would have a major impact on budgets and power-distribution in the EU.
At a news conference with Mr. Yushchenko and EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso, Mr. Sarkozy summarized the EU's position toward Ukraine as "this is the maximum we can do."
Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, Ukraine has tried to free itself from Russian tutelage. Although Ukraine has a large Russian ethnic minority, Mr. Yushchenko was elected four years ago on the promise that he would drive his country toward EU membership by 2020.
After Russia unilaterally recognized the independence of two Georgian separatist territories last month, it has been widely suggested that Moscow may covet other parts of its former empire, such as parts of Ukraine -- though Russia has dismissed the idea. In early 2006, however, Moscow showed it could punish Kiev for its aspirations to join the West, severing natural-gas deliveries to Ukraine for several days.
Mr. Yushchenko said Tuesday he wanted to renegotiate with Russia a set of rules governing the use of the Black Sea Fleet, a group of Russian warships anchored in the Ukraine city of Sebastopol.
Ukraine didn't do itself any favors last week, when the government entered yet another political crisis. Mr. Yushchenko withdrew his party from the pro-Western coalition government, saying that Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko had become too close to a pro-Russian opposition party.
Asked at Tuesday's news conference whether he continued to nurture hope Ukraine would join the EU one day, Mr. Yushchenko said: "We are patient."