Yushchenko hails Eastern Partnership initiative as pledge of mutual trust and security

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"I am glad that the Eastern Partnership initiative suggested by Poland and Sweden, which are devoted supporters of Europe's full-scale unification, is becoming a reality. I see the current event as one of the greatest victories of the European idea," Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko said on May 7 in Prague, where he took part in the statutory summit of the European Union's Eastern Partnership initiative.

As he put it, the summarizing declaration of the meeting is a "good document with clear-cut and comprehensible purposes." The success of this initiative, in Yushchenko's opinion, will depend on practical moves.

The President pointed out a particular importance of the fact that all countries of the region were invited to participation in Eastern Partnership.

This not only strengthens mutual trust, but also creates new levers for European unification, spread of democracy and enhancement of security," he said centering in the first place on the general European energy security.

In this context Yushchenko reminded of Ukraine's introduction together with Poland, Lithuania, Azerbaijan and Georgia of a common Baltic - Black Sea - Caspian energy space, and the recent Brussels international investment conference on modernization of Ukraine's gas transportation system.

He called as "important to the whole of Europe" the project for the Eurasian oil transportation corridor on the basis of Ukraine's Odesa - Brody oil pipeline, whose feasibility report has been already endorsed.

The President proposed holding presentation of the project soon at the European Commission with participation of its leadership, as well as representatives of Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Poland and Lithuania. "We must guarantee full mutual legal and institutional compatibility. This is a large-scale and truly history-making objective," he underscored.

UKRINFORM