Ukraine should not slow down reforms, question rule of law – Czech FM on European integration
Ukraine is already and should be part of the Western world, but recent weeks have reminded us that its accession to the EU and NATO depends on the actions of Ukraine itself, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said, who is currently on his sixth visit to Ukraine.
"Ukrainians are defending the values on which Europe stands. They are defending the world that we have been building for decades for our children... Ukrainians realize that in the future, the country's security and prosperity will only be ensured by the country's integration into the European Union and NATO. In this, Ukraine has our great support, although not unlimited. Ukraine should not slow down reforms in the country, just as it should not question the rule of law and anti-corruption measures. These are fragile but necessary components of the rules of Ukraine's path to Europe. We will not deviate from these demands," Lipavský wrote in his column for European Truth, published on Monday.
He said Russia commits war crimes and atrocities every day, including the targeted abduction and re-education of children. "The last time something like this was done on our continent was by Hitler almost a hundred years ago. Such actions should remain in the past, forbidden forever. However, many still believe that this aggression does not concern the West. This is a mistake. It concerns each of us – directly and deeply," the head of Czech diplomacy said.
Lipavský said Russia "wants to re-educate Ukrainians into the Russian people and turn Ukraine into a Russian province and satellite, in order to then destroy the entire Western civilization," but Ukrainians "do not want to be kidnapped back to the East."
He expressed confidence that "Ukraine and Europe will prevail."
"Just as the Dnipro, Kherson is Europe, Zaporizhia is Europe, Kryvy Rih is Europe. And Donetsk, Luhansk, Mariupol and Crimea will be Europe when the Ukrainian flag flies over them again, because Ukraine is Europe, and it is fighting in the clash of civilizations for the future of the Czechs, as well as the French, Italians, Germans, Poles and many other peoples," Lipavský said.