OTTAWA – The Ukraine-NATO Interparliamentary Council (UNIC) met on November 28 in Brussels. Following the meeting, UNIC co-chairs Sen. Raynell Andreychuk (Canada) and National Deputy Iryna Gerashchenko (Ukraine) released a statement, which read in part:
“During our meeting today, we reaffirmed our commitment to support Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic integration through parliamentary cooperation. The Annual National Program (ANP) and Comprehensive Assistance Package (CAP) provide tailored tools for extensive NATO-Ukraine cooperation.
Their scope extends not just to security and defense matters, but also to the broader political, economic and legislative framework needed to ensure that the reform of Ukraine’s security and defense sector is sustainable and affordable, and incorporates best practices of civilian control as well as democratic and parliamentary oversight.
In this sense, NATO-Ukraine cooperation supports Ukraine’s broader reform efforts, as well as the goals set in the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement.
We urge Ukrainian authorities to use the full potential of the ANP and the CAP, maintain the coherence and pace of reforms, and focus on the implementation of agreed priorities. …
In turn, we urge Allied governments to deliver on the assistance pledged to Ukraine, and increase their support for Kyiv’s efforts towards maximum institutional rapprochement with NATO. To this end, we urge Allies to maintain the pace and intensity of the NATO-Ukraine political dialogue and cooperation at all levels. …
As we have again today, we continue to condemn Russia’s illegal occupation of Crimea and direct support for members of the illegal armed groups operating in the region, as well as its use of cyber and information warfare and other destabilizing actions. We remain firm in our support for Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity. The full implementation of the Minsk agreements through the consolidation of the Normandy format and other mechanisms remains the best way forward in the occupied part of Donbas.”