EU accuses Russia of pressuring Ukraine to ditch landmark deal

Zee Media Bureau/Himanshu Kapoor

Vilnius: Accusing Russia of pressuring Ukraine into ditching the landmark deal, European Commission chief Manuel Barroso said that after economic pressure from Moscow, the former Soviet Union state turned its back on the landmark major trade and political deal with the EU. The EU said that it will not accept any meddling in its ties with the eastern nations of Europe. Barroso on Friday said that EU has rejected Russia’s `veto` on Ukraine on bloc ties with the former Soviet republic. Barroso told a news conference that “limited sovereignty was over in Europe.” However, EU Council president Herman Van Rompuy said that the deal with Ukraine is “still on the table.” Rompuy hoped that Ukraine will sign the 28-nation bloc`s offer sooner than later. The proposed deal is to improve bilateral trade, streamline industry rules and bring about key democratic reforms in Ukraine. Moldova and Georgia agreed on initial agreements with the EU marking the end of negotiations to strengthen mutual ties, but the agreement needs to be officially signed to come into effect. Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych told an EU summit on Friday that Kiev wanted to sign a historic pact with the bloc "in the near future" but needed economic and financial aid. Yanukovych said that the pause in the signing of the agreement doesn`t mean halt in euro-integration reforms that Ukraine so urgently needs. The two-day summit held in the Lithuanian capital to have celebrated a five-year drive to cement ties between the 28-nation bloc and six former Soviet states in eastern Europe and the Caucasus -- Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.