"We raised the issue and spoke about it. The parliamentary speaker assured me that steps were being taken to mitigate the situation and settle the matter, since some countries of the European Union (EU) see it as one of the matters that need to be solved to be able to sign the Association Agreement," Gedvilas told journalists after meeting with visiting Ukrainian Parliamentary (Supreme Rada) Speaker Volodymyr Rybak.
Rybak, in his turn, stated that the case was beyond the competences of the Supreme Rada. In his words, a few attempts were made to amend the Criminal Code, but the amendments did not rally the necessary support.
"We discussed changes to Ukraine's Criminal Code on a few occasions to decriminalize some activities. Nevertheless, deputies did not adopt the articles, some opposition MPs did not support them either. The matter is being discussed at a considerably higher level – at the level of the Ukrainian president, the European Parliament, EU representatives Alexander Kwasniewski and Pat Cox. We'll see what the negotiations bring," said the Ukrainian politician.
He also said in Vilnius on Friday that Ukraine would complete all of its commitments to the European Union in the end of September or early October to be able to sign the Association Agreement with the EU during the Eastern Partnership summit in Vilnius in November.
"Ukraine needs European values and European standards," Rybak said.
He emphasized that "all three branches of the Ukrainian administration – the president, the parliament, and the government – work to bring Ukraine to the EU."
Gedvilas, the Lithuanian parliamentary speaker, pledged support to the Ukrainian aspiration of signing the Association Agreement in November.
The EU seeks the release of the Ukrainian ex-PM who was sent to jail in 2011 for exceeding her powers. The EU believes the case was politically motivated.
The EU has warned that failure to settle the problem may thwart the plans of signing the Association Agreement with Kiev.
In an effort to reach a compromise, envoys of the European Parliament attempted to persuade the Ukrainian president into pardoning Tymoshenko and allowing her to start treatment of her chronic back pains in Germany. Nevertheless, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said the possibility was not envisaged in Ukraine's law.
Rybak's agenda in Vilnius also includes meetings with EU's external policy chief Catherine Ashton, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė, EU's enlargement commissioner Stefan Fuele and others.
As Lithuania holds EU Council presidency in the second half of this year, signing of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement is expected during the Eastern Partnership summit in Vilnius on November 28-29.
