Harper 'deeply concerned' over jail term for Ukrainian leader

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, at an award reception in Toronto, reinforced Canada's opposition to the prison sentence given to a Ukrainian opposition leader.

Harper said he was "deeply concerned" by the case of Yulia Tymoshttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifhenko during a speech Friday to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress where he received the Shevchenko medal, the organization's highest award.

Tymoshenko, a former prime minister of Ukraine and a driving force behind the country's 2004 pro-democracy Orange Revolution, was sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of abuse of power over a gas deal she signed with Russia in 2009.

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Can the European Union afford to lose Ukraine?

The European Union needs to give Ukraine a clear path to accession in order to take advantage of the country's economic potential and encourage democratic reform, argues Martin Nunn. Martin Nunn is the Communications Director of the Ukrainian Foundation for Democracy "People First".
"There is almost nothing worse than a noisy and unruly neighbour. In most cases we would try to ignore them, put up with the noise and hope that they don't lean over the garden fence to strike up a conversation.
True, Ukrainian politicians do behave like unruly children that have yet to learn some of the European social skills, the finer points of democracy, the sanctity of the rule of law and just how to do business in the real world. But ask yourself, can the EU really call itself a 'European Union' without a long term vision of just how to integrate the countries of the east into the wider European family.

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Source: Euractiv