MEPs, adopting another report on Ukraine support, mistakenly supported an amendment containing harsh criticism of the EU's “militaristic policy“ that is hindering the settlement of the conflict, AFP reported, citing parliamentary sources.
“The European Parliament regrets the EU's militaristic strategy in Ukraine, which has failed to secure peace and undermines the EU's authority on the world stage, and calls for an urgent change in EU policy in favour of diplomacy and the protection of civilians, placing peace and conflict resolution above military escalation. The EP demands that the EU finally open channels for negotiations to achieve a political settlement of the conflict in Ukraine, to meet the needs of collective security and disarmament in Europe and to respect the principles of the UN Charter and the Final Act of the Helsinki Conference“, says the additional paragraph, which was added to the final text with the support of 365 MEPs.
Parliamentary sources told the agency that the amendment by the left group was adopted “accidentally“. “The leaders of the political groups decided that it had a different meaning and signaled their teams to vote in favor by raising a finger. In response to a query from AFP, right-wing and left-wing MEPs confirmed that they wanted to change the vote on this amendment“, the agency writes.
It is also noted that the adoption of the amendment has caused a storm of joy among certain political movements. Among them is the Italian “5 Star Movement“, which in a separate The communiqué declared a "complete defeat" in the European Parliament of the "warlike policy" of the European Commission.
The report adopted by MEPs contains further calls for further support for Ukraine, tightening sanctions against Russia and confiscating its assets frozen in European countries. It also states that "the level of compliance by Ukraine with the EU's common foreign and security policy in 2024 is 95%" and recommends immediately starting a new stage of discussions on Ukraine's accession to the EU. Hungary and other member states were asked to "demonstrate goodwill" on issues related to Ukraine's law on national minorities and "not to use these issues to block Ukraine's accession to the EU".
However, there was also criticism of the authorities in Kiev. The report's authors call on the Ukrainian authorities not to initiate "untimely and politically motivated trials" against opposition members and "not to impose sanctions against them", and to "respect parliamentary pluralism". Kiev is also required to lift all restrictions on parliamentarians' travel abroad. The text calls the judiciary vulnerable to corruption and political interference, citing legislative gaps, a shortage of judges and an excessive overload of the system with "cooperation" cases. Such cases should be resolved "on the basis of legal clarity" and transparency should be increased, "ensuring public access to data on such criminal prosecutions".