The government in Ukraine needs to spell out its long-term political offering to the people of its troubled eastern regions. The fragile ceasefire agreed by President Petro Poroshenko included a promise to give the Donbass region around Donetsk and Luhansk a “special status” with limited autonomy. The problem is that it is not clear if this proposal will be accepted by the Russian-backed insurgents who want full independence or at the very least a federal structure.
But at least Poroshenko’s offer points to him seeking the right kind of compromise. It is similar to the compromise that he has just announced over the trade deal with the European Union that he will sign this week. But in order to keep Russia happy, Poroshenko will delay Ukraine’s lowering of tariffs for European goods until the end of 2015. This allays Russian fears of cheap European goods flooding into Russia from Ukraine. Poroshenko needs to be clear that while Russian political interference in Ukrainian affairs is absolutely wrong, good relations with Russia are necessary and welcome.
Russia is an important neighbour and trading partner of Ukraine, but that does not mean that Russian troops can roam around Ukraine seeking to destabilise it. President Vladmir Putin’s imperial ambitions have to be limited by force, if necessary, before normal relations can resume. Poroshenko’s constitutional proposals are still vague. He will have to match the clarity of his compromise over the important trade deal with the EU while also keeping the Russians happy, with similar clarity on the status of the border regions.
It is unfortunate that he has told his ministers that “the Minsk Protocol envisages the restoration and preservation of Ukrainian sovereignty in the Donbass. There is no question of federalisation or separation of any Ukrainian territory”, but he then told the Russian rebels that the Donbass would get a special status with greater autonomy. This kind of confusion simply makes everyone mistrust each other. Poroshenko cannot get way with saying two contradictory things and needs to make a simple and clear offer to all Ukrainians regardless of whether they speak Russian or Ukrainian.
