Ukraine ruling party meets to address dissension over Euro-integration

The Party of Regions, the ruling political force in Ukraine, held a closed-door meeting on September 4 in Kyiv to discuss the legislative agenda for the new parliamentary session, as well as resolve ideological differences, particularly the decision by Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to pursue the signing of the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement.

A significant segment of the party favors close ties with the Russian Federation, including joining the Customs Union. Yanukovych spent the meeting convincing his parliamentary faction to vote in favor of the legislation necessary for the Association Agreement, spending twice as much time as he had planned, Kyiv’s Kapital newspaper reported on September 5.

Yanukovych addressed the public statements made by Regions MPs opposed to Euro-integration, Kapital reported, as well as reports that a group of 30-40 MPs has emerged within the parliamentary faction opposing Euro-integration. By its conclusion, the meeting’s participants agreed to vote unanimously in favor of all the bills that will be considered today to satisfy the requirements of the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement, Regions MP Volodymyr Makeyenko told the newspaper.

Zenon Zawada: Certainly, today’s parliamentary session will be revealing. Parliamentary leaders, from both the ruling majority and the opposition, said they will support at least five major bills to satisfy the Association Agreement’s requirements. We are confident the pro-Western opposition will vote in favor.

The uncertainty lies in the estimated 30-40 Party of Regions MPs who oppose abandoning the Customs Union, which the Association Agreement will require. If they resist orders from the party leadership, including Yanukovych himself, to vote for the necessary laws, then the Russian attempt to undermine the Association Agreement will gain a higher degree of legitimacy as a significant force in Ukraine’s politics.