European Leaders Caution Against Pre-Judging Elections in Ukraine

European Leaders Caution Against Pre-Judging Elections in Ukraine PR Newswire BERLIN, October 24, 2012 BERLIN, October 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- European leaders gathering in Berlin for a conference entitled "Ukraine and Europe: Elections, Integration and Economic Prospects" warned that Sunday's parliamentary elections in Ukraine should not be pre-judged or seen "through the lens of the Tymoshenko case." "We should not allow the Tymoshenko case to decide the future of our relations," said Guenter Verheugen, who served as European Commissioner for Enlargement from 1999 to 2004. He noted that the conviction of the former Prime Minister - who was convicted last year for abuse of office for illegally signing a controversial $10 billion gas deal with Russia in 2009 without Cabinet approval - was being used as a "political instrument" in some EU countries to slow down the process of European integration. "While the Tymoshenko case is front and centre, there have been real legal reforms, including a new criminal code," noted former Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski, who is currently serving as co-head of the European Parliament's Monitoring Mission to Ukraine. He pointed out that Ukraine has pluralistic politics, a functioning opposition and a regular change in leadership, with each of the last four presidents coming from different political parties.