Ukraine attacks Europol over organised crime report

[IreneLviv]

ANDREW RETTMAN
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS

Ukraine's ambassador to the EU has said a major police report was wrong in concluding that visa-free travel could help organised crime gangs to operate inside the union.

Writing in a brief note emailed to press on Thursday (5 May), Kostiantyn Yelisieiev said the study, put out by Europol one day earlier, "undermines the impartial and objective nature" of the joint police body in The Hague.


Shipping containers: Europol says Odessa is a hotspot for cocaine and heroin smugglers (Photo: dawvon)
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"It is not acceptable, and I expect that this unfortunate mistake will be corrected by Europol. I urge the Europol to revise its statements."

Yelisieiev did not deny that Ukraine has a problem with organised crime.

But he said the European Commission has in the past given more positive assessments of its efforts to improve law and order and indicated that any worries should be handled through its strategic agreement with Europol instead of being aired in public.

"Europol statements are not consistent [with EU commission findings] and might prejudge future assessment to be conducted by the European Commission in the framework of visa liberalisation dialogue with Ukraine," he noted.

The Europol study says south east Europe is a hub for smuggling arms, drugs and people into the union. It adds that the Ukrainian port of Odessa is at the centre of a new Black Sea route for cocaine and heroin traffickers. It also says Ukrainian gangs play a big role in Europe's €10 billion-a-year illegal cigarettes market.

"The projected introduction of a visa-free regime for Ukraine may itself facilitate trafficking via the Black Sea route," it warns.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has made stability and the rule of law his top domestic priority, launching a purge on allegedly corrupt politicians such as former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko.

Privately, Ukrainian diplomats admit that Russian and Ukrainian organised crime groups have tentacles reaching to the top of its political and business establishment.

One of the country's richest men - the gas, media and pharmaceuticals tycoon Dmitry Firtash (Baba Anna's fellow villager and benefactor) - himself told US diplomats that he started out in business under the patronage of the Russia mafia. Firtash later denied making the comments, which came to light in a WikiLeaks cable.

On the related issue of corruption, Transparency International last year put Ukraine in 134th place in its world ranking, behind countries such as Belarus and Sierra Leone. A 2006 study by Global Witness said Yanukovych's current energy minister, Yuri Boiko, oversaw "hair-raising" accounting practices at the state-owned firm Naftogaz between 2002 and 2005.

Ukraine unilaterally dropped visa requirements for EU citizens six years ago and regularly complains about disrespectful treatment of Ukrainian nationals and red tape at EU consulates.

The EU commission last year gave it an Action Plan for reforms leading to visa-free travel. But there is little prospect of a breakthrough in time for the Euro 2012 football championship in Kiev.

[Hannia]

Baba Anna

Is this Firtash's Grandmother? Who is she?

[IreneLviv]

Baba Anna - is Stephen's relative - a match for anyone in cryptography league - remember??

[Gotno Gizmo]

With the current situation prevailing between Italy and France concerning migrants from Tunisia arriving on Italian soil, requesting asylum and thereafter trying to enter France, the Schengen visa regime is now under pressure. These countries are requesting that the EU revise the individual state's acceptance requirements under Schengen.
If Schengen is revised, it may well result in Ukrainian travellers experiencing greater entry difficulties, rather than them experiencing an easing of travel limitations.

[Hannia]

Frankly, this thing between Italy and France is quite funny. Sarkosy was fooled by Berlusconi. They had previously been butting heads over ths same subject. Italy claims that it panicked over the influx of the 25,000 Tunisians fleeing N.Africa and quickly decided to provide most w/permits allowing them to travel to neighboring France -much to Sarkosy’s dismay.

I think the EU as an org is going to be changing soon anyway. I can easily see Greece being the first ditch and then very likely Italy would be next. The revenue generators in the EU cannot continue carrying these nations. I just don't see how they can get around not dumping some of these countries and there will be legal revisions in a variety of agreements.

[Gotno Gizmo]

Hannia, I agree with you, I know that I'm a pessimist, but it's difficult to be upbeat about the developing situation within the EU.

On the Schengen visa topic, the influx of North African migrants will do little to ease future visa free applications for countries like Ukraine, but may result in greater restrictions of movement in the future.

As for the Euro monetary situation; it moves slowly to a precipice with a growing possibility of countries like Greece, Portugal and Ireland getting into severe difficulties. If one of these fails to pay it's debts the whole Euro monetary system will be undermined and the larger countries like Italy and Spain will also then come under severe financial pressure.