Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2012-05-22-Speech-2-101-000"
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"en.20120522.5.2-101-000"2
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"Mr President, by initialling the association agreement with Ukraine, the EU has made it clear what we are prepared to do in our relations with that country. However, the discrepancy between what are said to be our shared values and the reality in the country is growing ever greater. The regime believes that only by keeping the opposition leader, Ms Tymoshenko, and other members of her government in prison can it be sure of winning the parliamentary elections in October.
Power is becoming more and more concentrated in the hands of the Yanukovych family and its close associates who are seeking to increase their own wealth. Key positions in the ministry of the interior, the tax authorities and the central bank, among other organisations, are now held by these people. Then the prime minister’s son, Alexander, goes on a shopping trip and buys up small and medium-sized businesses throughout the country, with the support of the tax authorities. He suddenly appears on the list of the richest people in Ukraine and his wealth has obviously grown significantly within the space of a year. The population responds with resignation and apathy to shameless acts of this kind, which simply serve to increase the family’s personal fortune, and to the imprisonment of the opposition. However, the people also remember that the Orange camp during its period in government also spent more time fighting than implementing the necessary reforms.
What should we do now? I am calling on the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament to terminate this agreement of 14 October 2010 earlier than planned and not to leave it in place until the parliamentary elections. Of course dialogue remains important, but we should not artificially enhance the status of these people by means of an agreement of this kind. The EU should initiate a comprehensive communication strategy aimed directly at the population and at civil society in order to make it clear what our concerns are. At the same time, we should tell Mr Yanukovych what we expect of him and by when. We need to set clear limits.
Mr Füle, you should not be under the illusion that the good intentions that we have towards the country and its people in our agreement have been the driving force behind the actions of the ruling family. The reality is that the son of Mr Yanukovych, the rest of the family and its friends want to increase their personal wealth. The only question is whether the other oligarchs see this as a threat to their own interests. We should combine the carrot for the country with a stick for the family and the oligarchs for their dishonestly acquired wealth in the EU. We need to locate their assets and freeze them. I have read that Cyprus would be a good place to start looking for the accounts. I hope that we have the political will to do this."@en1
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