The former co-rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for Ukraine (1995-2007), Hanne Severinsen, believes that Ukraine should be granted a visa-free regime with the European Union countries.
“This is my personal opinion, but I’m sure that many people in Europe share it: Ukraine should have a visa-free regime, so that people can see that there can be a different way of governing the state,” she said at a press conference in Kyiv on Monday.
Severinsen noted that there were still problems in protecting the border, especially from the Ukrainian side of the border.
When asked whether the Council of Europe could use against the Ukrainian authorities sanctions similar to those applied to the Belarusian officials, Severinsen said: “I think the spirit of freedom, which has already arisen in your community can not be so easily contained and suppressed. I think that it won’t come to such authoritarianism in Ukraine.”
Still, it is very important that the Ukrainian president and his administration know that they are being watched by Europe, she pointed out.
Severinsen said that she is on a private visit to Ukraine, and that she was going to participate in a media conference on Tuesday and attend the Ukrainian-European forum that will be held in Kyiv Wednesday through Friday.
