EU urging Ukraine to approve controversial Donbas special status
3 October 2017
Top EU officials, including German Chancellor Merkel,
are urging the members of Ukraine’s parliament to make the latest attempt to
approve special status for the occupied districts of the Donetsk and Luhansk
regions (collectively known as “Donbas”) in the next two weeks, reported
Parliamentary Vice Speaker Oksana Syroyid on her Facebook page on Oct. 2.
Though earlier it was required as a constitutional amendment (which was
rejected by parliament), this attempt would occur as a rider to a new law on
reintegrating Donbas, which MPs said will be registered with parliament on
Thursday. Poroshenko Bloc MPs said the law has to be approved by Oct. 18, as
also suggested by EU officials, when the previous law on local governance
expires after it was never fulfilled (due to ongoing fighting in the Donbas
region).
Meanwhile, the law on reintegrating Donbas creates the
legal framework for a new military strategy to respond to Russia’s hybrid
warfare. Drafted with the involvement of U.S. and EU consultants, it
establishes a permanent military headquarters in the war zone with wide
authority to direct the Armed Forces. The law also enables the government to
employ the Armed Forces in conditions other than an officially declared war
(which would close access to IMF loans) or the current Anti-Terrorist
Operation. The legislation officially establishes that parts of the Donetsk and
Luhansk regions are occupied by Russian forces, who are waging military
aggression against the state of Ukraine and violating the Minsk Accords.
Besides being criticized for its declarative statements with questionable legal
validity, other critics like Syroyid oppose the bill for giving the president
unconstitutional authority, including the ability to wage war without an
official declaration (or martial law status), as well as giving the president
the ability to overturn the mandate of local councils and their heads.
Zenon Zawada: While the
law on reintegrating Donbas was expected down the pipeline and has its own set
of critics, adding the Donbas special status rider to the legislation creates a
new dimension that greatly widens the scope of opponents. Already Ukraine’s
pro-Western forces are mobilizing to fight its approval, despite demands from
the top EU leadership, which said the special status’ approval is needed to
prove to Russia that Ukraine is fulfilling the political requirements of the
Minsk Accords (as reported by Syroyid). The same argument was used in attempts
in previous years to get parliament to approve the special status.
being intent on approving the legislation, with just as much intensity from the
pro-Western opposition, which fervently opposes creating the special status
that sets up elections when Russian forces remain present throughout Donbas
(and fighting is ongoing). This scenario creates the potential for more
raucous, if not violent parliamentary sessions in the coming weeks. Moreover,
this could interfere with attempts to approve legislation – such as the pension
reform package – that is crucial for securing the next IMF loan tranche (in the
range of USD 1 bln) by the year end.
