Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze: ‘I wish strong institutions for Ukraine and an ability to move as quickly as possible to meet the Copenhagen criteria’

The Chair of the Committee on Ukraine's integration into the EU, within the Ukrainian parliamentary delegation, visited Denmark. Together with her colleagues, she met with the speaker of the Danish Parliament, Soren Gade, representatives of various political forces, members of the Folketing's national security and defence committees, and the deputy secretary of foreign policy of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Ukrainian delegation thanked Denmark and its people for supporting Ukraine. According to the polls, 73% of Danes support the provision of arms to Ukraine, 80% support further assistance to Ukraine. ‘Almost all political forces present in the Parliament are unanimously for continuing the aid, and they are among those who provide us with military support. We talked about further possibilities, about the continuity of this process, which is fundamental for our joint victory. And they understand and emphasise that in this war we are also fighting for them,’ Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze informed.

The European integration of Ukraine was also discussed at the meetings. Ukrainian MPs emphasised the need for support during this transformational period on the way to membership in the European Union. ‘So we could make this path with dignity and as quickly as possible. Our Danish colleagues emphasised that there are no detours to EU membership. It requires a lot of work, but they are ready to get involved and use their experience, as when they helped Poland and the Baltic countries go through this path’, said the Chair of the Committee. In the context of Euro-Atlantic integration, the parties mentioned the need for an in-depth discussion and search for consensus on Ukraine's membership in NATO. ‘We need to go to the Vilnius summit in July this year with more ambitious plans regarding Ukraine's potential membership in NATO’, Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze said.

The Chair of the Committee on Ukraine's Integration into the EU also took part in a panel discussion within the framework of the ‘Future for a Democratic Ukraine’ conference, which was held at the Ukrainian House in Copenhagen. This space opened last week thanks to the efforts of public organisations and the Embassy of Ukraine in Denmark. The central and municipal authorities in Copenhagen supported its establishment and provided premises for the Ukrainian House free of charge for three years.

Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze emphasised that after the end of the war, Ukraine should be free from Russia, from the post-colonial and post-Soviet heritage. It should have strong civil society. ‘I dream that the political parties in Ukraine compete with ideologies, not leaders. I would like our society, built on horizontal connections, to be a society of responsible individuals who do not know the words populism and paternalism and do not accept these concepts. That we have strong institutions, that we move as quickly and qualitatively as possible to meet the Copenhagen criteria, which Denmark is so proud of. These criteria were adopted at the European Council in Copenhagen in 1993. And they are the basis for the membership of a country in the European Union’, said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze.

The Chair of the Committee also emphasised that after the war, Ukraine should build a post-industrial economy, and not just rebuild Soviet plants and factories. It should have a vision and a new approach to reconstruction, which should take place with the involvement of partners, monitoring the use of funds.

The participants of the discussion paid special attention to the question of Russia's responsibility, as well as the work of Western partners to determine in what way and through which courts Russian leaders can be held accountable for the crime of aggression and all those involved —for war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of genocide.