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Ukraine to restart work on EU pact after pro-Europe protests
Source: The Guardian
Ukraine to restart work on EU pact after pro-Europe protests
Shaun Walker and Oksana Grytsenko in Kiev
The Guardian, Tuesday 10 December 2013 18.26 GMT
Ukraine's president has promised to restart work on an association agreement with the European Union, as he sought to quell the huge protests that have gripped Kiev in recent weeks.
Viktor Yanukovych said a delegation would travel to Brussels on Wednesday, and suggested the association pact he pulled out of last month could be signed in the spring if Europe could give Ukraine better financial conditions.
"We tasked the government to accelerate this work and involve as many specialists as needed," said Yanukovych during a televised roundtable discussion with the three former presidents of independent Ukraine. "When is the next summit? If it takes place in March then we have to finish this work by March. But it will depend not only on us, it will also depend on the European commission. This is our goal."
Yanukovych pulled out of the deal amid heavy pressure from Russia, which wants Ukraine to join its rival Customs Union. Russia is believed to have offered cash-strapped Ukraine financial support and reduced gas prices. "We want to achieve conditions that satisfy Ukraine, Ukrainian producers, the Ukrainian people," said Yanukovych on Tuesday.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Shaun Walker and Oksana Grytsenko in Kiev
The Guardian, Tuesday 10 December 2013 18.26 GMT
Ukraine's president has promised to restart work on an association agreement with the European Union, as he sought to quell the huge protests that have gripped Kiev in recent weeks.
Viktor Yanukovych said a delegation would travel to Brussels on Wednesday, and suggested the association pact he pulled out of last month could be signed in the spring if Europe could give Ukraine better financial conditions.
"We tasked the government to accelerate this work and involve as many specialists as needed," said Yanukovych during a televised roundtable discussion with the three former presidents of independent Ukraine. "When is the next summit? If it takes place in March then we have to finish this work by March. But it will depend not only on us, it will also depend on the European commission. This is our goal."
Yanukovych pulled out of the deal amid heavy pressure from Russia, which wants Ukraine to join its rival Customs Union. Russia is believed to have offered cash-strapped Ukraine financial support and reduced gas prices. "We want to achieve conditions that satisfy Ukraine, Ukrainian producers, the Ukrainian people," said Yanukovych on Tuesday.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/10/ukraine-european-union-pact-viktor-yanukovych
