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09. 02. 10. - 15:00

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09. 02. 10. - 15:00

Foreign minister praises Ukrainian presidential election

People’s Party (ÖVP) Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger today (Tues) hailed the problem-free Ukrainian presidential elections on Sunday a sign of the country’s "democratic development".

He said: "The victor in the Ukrainian presidential election is the Ukrainian people. It showed its engagement and its democratic orientation by its participation in two electoral rounds.

"The fact alone that the two rounds occurred without major incidents shows that Ukraine’s democratic development and the achievements of the 2004 Orange Revolution are irreversible.

"The important thing is that all Ukrainian political forces realise that the election is a mandate for the early creation of political stability and continuation of already begun reforms," he added.

In response to the election, Austrian Economy Chamber (WKO) President Christoph Leitl called yesterday for prompt negotiation of a free-trade agreement between the European Union and Ukraine.

He said he had no fear that the outcome of the disputed Ukrainian presidential election on Sunday would have a negative impact on Austrian-Ukrainian economic and commercial relations and hoped the outcome would help stabilise Ukraine’s economy and politics.

Leitl added that Austrian companies’ investment of 2.5 billion Euros in Ukraine made Austria the fourth-biggest foreign investor in the country, which he said was in "an extremely serious economic situation."

He also noted that Austrian exports to Ukraine had declined by 46 per cent year on year to 461.5 million Euros during the first 11 months of 2009, in part thanks to the rapid depreciation of the Ukrainian currency.

Austrian Times

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