Visa-free travel with EU: Kyiv advised to strengthen fight against corruption and arms smuggling

The EU has stated that Ukraine continues to fulfil the conditions of visa liberalisation in general, but further efforts are needed where possible, as stated in the sixth report of the European Commission within the framework of the visa-free regime suspension mechanism.

Source: European Pravda, citing EU’s report

Quote: “Overall, Ukraine continues to fulfil the visa liberalisation benchmarks and has taken action to address some of the Commission’s previous recommendations. However, further efforts are needed, where possible in the current context.”

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The European Commission thinks that the following issues require further resolution:

1. Alignment of Ukraine’s visa policy with the list of third countries with which the EU has a visa regime, in particular with regard to countries that pose a threat to the EU through illegal migration or security;
2. Continuing efforts in the fight against organised crime, with a particular focus on combating the smuggling of firearms and drugs, despite the challenges posed by the war.
3. Continued efforts in the fight against corruption, including through the adoption of an action plan for the implementation of the Asset Recovery and Tracing Strategy for the period 2020-2025 and amendments to the ARMA (Agency for Investigation and Management of Assets) law, which regulates the disposal of seized assets.

The report also says that Ukraine adheres to international human rights documents and standards, while Ukrainian citizens have been seriously affected by Russia’s widespread violations of fundamental rights.

“Martial law was introduced at the start of the Russian full-scale invasion restricting rights and freedoms, though it has remained largely proportional to actual needs and has been applied with caution, maintaining a good level of freedom of expression despite restrictions to the media landscape,” the report reads.

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At the same time, the European Commission noted a significant decrease in discrimination against minorities, including persons belonging to the LGBTIQ+ community, anti-Semitic acts and national minorities.

The EU Council approved the mechanism for suspending visa-free regimes with third countries in February 2017. The document lists five reasons for which visa-free suspension is possible. Four of them relate to migration. The EU reserves the right to return visas to any country that becomes a source of migration threat. The fifth reason for the possible cancellation of visa-free travel is a setback in implementing reforms.

Background: On 18 October, the European Commission proposed to review the current mechanism for suspending visa-free regimes to make it more stringent.

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