According to Ms. Tymoshenko, by signing a package of public and secret documents on December, 17th with Vladimir Putin, Viktor Yanukovych deliberately put Ukraine under the political, military, energy, financial and economic control of the Russian Federation.
“The essence of the agreement between Yanukovych and Putin is much broader and complex than just some agreements that have been partially revealed to Ukraine and the world. The results of these agreements will be gradually implemented in the long-term strategic perspective until the creation of a single state entity under the complete domination of Russia and the gradual absorption of our state sovereignty,” Ms. Tymoshenko says.
According to Tymoshenko, what Yanukovych did on December 17, 2013 is much worse than simply joining the Customs Union. “These were the first irreversible changes. Yanukovych no longer has the political freedom to make any independent decisions on the international arena. As of December 17, 2013, any steps by Ukraine towards Europe, including the signing of an association agreement between Ukraine and the EU, are impossible,” Tymoshenko claims.
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As Yulia Tymoshenko points out, after the signing of the agreement on December 17, Russian gas will not be cheaper for Ukraine because the annual interest that our country will pay for the 15 billion loan will be equal to the "discount" for gas. But the package of agreements signed on December 17 with every year will drag us deeper and deeper into financial and energy slavery with no easy way out.
This board of oligarch advisors along with Yanukovych, according to Tymoshenko, made the decision to merge Ukraine with Russia on the molecular level with the complete surrender of the country as a sovereign state. And this is much more complicated that Ukraine just joining the Customs Union.
“The only way out of this dangerous situation is the immediate peaceful removal of Yanukovych from power through constitutional means based on the will of the people. The removal of Yanukovych, not his marionettes – the government, NSDC or individual ministers,” says Tymoshenko.
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In her statement Tymoshenko also appealed to the leaders of opposition. “Don’t be afraid of anything! Lead the Ukrainian people to victory over dictatorship by uniting your efforts with the democratic world. The only thing you can’t do is give up and find a convenient reason to retreat. Don’t leave the Maidans until a new, democratic, pro-European president is elected early in Ukraine and the entire system of life in Ukraine begins to change. To retreat now and stop fighting would be the worst betrayal of the Ukrainian people”.
