There is no better European Union response to the Ukrainian crisis than the fact that the previously drafted political chapters of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement are to be signed at the meeting of the European Council next Friday - said MFA Minister of State in charge of EU Affairs Enikő Győri at a press briefing held on 19 March 2014.
The Hungarian Minister of State highlighted: this will fulfil the demand of the Ukrainians who demonstrated at the Maidan in Kyiv. Despite the fact that the propaganda still talks about the dividedness of the EU and it may be true that the interests of EU Member States differ, the EU has still managed to provide a relatively rapid and unified response to the situation - she claimed. She added that at the same time it has to be taken into account that some Member States are more affected by the Ukrainian situation than others.
Ms Győri said that EU Heads of State and Government will discuss the Ukrainian situation on Thursday, which "they need to and will react to". The Member States are resolved to do this, everybody is aware of the gravity of the situation and "there are still some measures that we can implement" - she said.
The Hungarian Minister of State pointed out that the EU had decided on a three-level system of sanctions, they are now at the second level of these, having forbidden the entry of certain persons and frozen their assets. There remains room for movement, but a decision has to be made whether going to the next level is necessary or not - she said. She remarked that several countries have also introduced certain measures - for example regarding military cooperation - at a bilateral level.
Ms Győri declared that this time the EU has understood much better how each country is affected differently by the situation with relation to energy security. Hungary is among the most exposed nations in this respect. The EU has to make balanced decisions applying the principle of solidarity and burden sharing - she pointed out, adding that there is an impact study being prepared about how the Ukrainian crisis affects different countries.
(Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
