Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine

The event was organised by Interpares, a technical assistance project for strengthening the capacity of the Verkhovna Rada. Project members studied the needs of the Verkhovna Rada and conducted negotiations with the parliaments of the member states, which could share experience and expertise in the European integration process with their colleagues from Ukraine. The members of the Committee expressed their gratitude to the representatives of all parliaments who volunteered to participate in the webinar and shared their unique European integration experience.

The Chair of the Committee on Ukraine's Integration into the EU, Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, noted that this experience is very valuable for Ukraine. The path that European colleagues have already made and their useful advice will come in handy. “You can help us by sharing the experience of the countries that either went through the path of European integration or have a good understanding of how the European Union works, what role the national parliaments have and which capacities need to be developed. This path for us is still has many unknowns. We hope that during today's webinar, approaches and our next steps will be clarified,” said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze.

She noted that over the years, the Ukrainian Parliament has played an important role in the process of European integration, starting with the ratification of the Association Agreement, the visa-free regime with the European Union, and ending with persistent legislative work to fulfil the conditions that accompanied the granting of candidate status to Ukraine, and later the opening of accession negotiations.

Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze expressed hope that by the end of June, the European Council will give an official start to negotiations on Ukraine's membership in the European Union. “We understand that the amount of legislative work and tasks will only increase in the future. This means, first of all, that we need to strengthen the institutional capacity of the Verkhovna Rada both at the level of specialised committees, at the level of the Committee that I have the honour to chair — on Ukraine's integration into the European Union, and at the level of the parliamentary service in general and its specific parts”, — said the Chair of the Committee. For this purpose, according to her, it will be necessary to change and improve a lot. “And here you mustn’t give preference to speed over quality. We hope that together with you we will find answers to how Ukraine will manage to do this during such a brutal war,” — said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze.

The Chair of the Committee added that, despite all the challenges of the war, the Parliament continues to work to ensure the ability of Ukraine and Ukrainians to enjoy their right to life, their right to choose and their right to a European democratic future. “With your help, we hope that we will succeed and that it will be possible to complete this path at least not in a longer period than other countries that successfully joined the European Union,” — said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze.