Sunday, December 18, 2016

Ukrainian interest. EU game of cat and mouse with visa lib, Western impotence, and Miller intersection


Yevgeny Magda


REUTERS

Last week’s kaleidoscope of news from Brussels has gotten millions of Ukrainians confused. The Aleppo tragedy further highlighted the impotence of the West against the assertive Russia, whatever Barack Obama says about his warnings to Vladimir Putin. Gazprom has launched a verbal cannonade ahead of a new gas war, in which both the EU and Ukraine may be on the same side of the barricades.



The adoption by the European Parliament of a visa waiver suspension mechanism, contrary to general expectations of Ukrainian citizens, has not made clear the date when the Schengen zone visa requirements will be lifted for them. This is due to the efforts not to play along with Euro-skeptics in the upcoming elections in France and the Netherlands. 

The EU officials reiterate readiness to pass the decision in favor of Ukraine but it will definitely not happen in 2016. The desire to turn visa liberalization into a strategic victory has brought new challenges for the Ukrainian authorities.






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