Following the debate which took place during the sitting of 12 October 2011, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the current developments in Ukraine.

The resolution was tabled by the, ALDE, Greens/EFA, S&D, ECR and EPP groups.

It deplores the sentencing of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on 11 October 2011as a violation of human rights and an abuse of the judiciary for the purpose of the political suppression of Ukraine's leading opposition politician. It emphasises that the law selectively applied against Tymoshenko dates back to Soviet times and makes provision for criminal prosecution for political decisions; whereas Articles 364 and 365 of that law, which are currently under review by the Verhovna Rada, do not conform to European and UN standards. The sentencing is widely seen as either an act of revenge or as part of an attempt to convict and imprison opposition members in order to prevent them from standing and campaigning in next year's parliamentary election and the 2015 presidential election. Parliament also expresses alarm at reports concerning the deterioration of media freedom and pluralism in Ukraine.

Members urge the Ukrainian authorities to ensure a fair, transparent and impartial legal process should Yulia Tymoshenko appeal against her conviction, and in the other trials against members of the former government, and they insist that Yulia Tymoshenko should be allowed to exercise her right to participate fully in the political process both as of now and in the forthcoming elections in Ukraine. Furthermore, Parliament is concerned that the Tymoshenko trial is at odds with the Ukraine Government's proclaimed commitment to democracy and European values. It takes the view that a failure to review Yulia Tymoshenko's conviction will jeopardise the conclusion of the Association Agreement , which is currently being negotiated and its ratification, while pushing the country further away from the realisation of its European perspective. Parliament calls on the Commission to support judicial reform in Ukraine by making better use of the EU's capacity-building programme and to consider setting up a High-Level EU Advisory Group to assist Ukraine in its efforts to fall into line with EU legislation, including in the judicial sphere.

The resolution stresses that the strengthening of the rule of law and internal reform , including a credible fight against corruption, are essential not only for the conclusion and ratification of the Association Agreement and the deepening of EU-Ukraine relations, but also for the consolidation of democracy in Ukraine. It strongly supports the recommendations put forward in the joint opinion of the Venice Commission and the OSCE/ODIHR on the draft parliamentary election law, and considers it essential that these recommendations should be adopted and implemented in an expedient, inclusive and comprehensive fashion, involving both the opposition and civil society.

Lastly, Parliament considers that the recently postponed meeting with President Yanukovych would have offered an excellent opportunity to tackle serious concerns which have been addressed to the Ukraine Government and re-establish a constructive dialogue that could lead to the initialling of the Association Agreement, provided that significant progress is made on the remaining technical and key political obstacles. It calls on the Council and Commission to reschedule the meeting with President Yanukovych so that it takes place ahead of the planned EU-Ukraine Summit in December 2011.

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