Prague Manifesto for a free Ukraine

I co-signed the Prague Manifesto for a free Ukraine because I support the freedom of Ukraine and for all. The defeat of Russia’s aggression is Ukraine is a precondition for a whole, free, and peaceful Europe. Ukraine’s victory will renew the promise of democracy for people across the world.

Prague Manifesto for a Free Ukraine

On February 24th, 2022, the Russian Federation renewed its aggression and further (on full scale) invaded Ukraine in an illegal and unprovoked aggression that needs to be strongly denounced, resisted, and defeated. Russia’s attack against the mere existence of Ukraine as an independent nation is at the same time a severe blow to the European security, to international law and a rule based global order.

In their response to this aggression, the Ukrainian people have given the world a lesson in heroism. Their valiant defense of their right to freedom and independence against the barbaric Russian invasion has affirmed for the benefit of the entire world the principle that might does not make right, that aggression must be resisted and punished, and that people everywhere have a profound stake in the preservation of a democratic international system.

The heroic Ukrainian resistance has generated a massive wave of solidarity. The transatlantic and global alliance of democracies has united in providing Ukraine with military assistance, humanitarian aid, and medical support. Many countries have welcomed Ukrainian refugees and granted them safe haven while at the same time imposing sweeping financial and economic sanctions on Russia and resolving to end Western dependence on Russian oil and gas. Much more, however, is needed.

Since the Revolution of Dignity in 2014, the Ukrainian people and their democratically- elected government have not wavered in their determination to become part of Europe. Russia’s indiscriminate and unlawful bombing has killed tens of thousands of civilians, and thousands of Ukrainian soldiers, many of whom were the most devoted of Ukraine’s youth who embodied hope for the country’s future. It also has caused massive devastation to Ukraine’s economy and infrastructure. Russian soldiers are committing barbaric war crimes against Ukrainian citizens, encouraged by their political and military leaders and hailed by Russian media.

None of these have stopped Ukraine’s determination to become a member of the European Union. It has only grown stronger. Ukraine’s European aspiration and its vision of independent statehood anchored in the family of European democracies underpins its brave struggle for survival.

We, the citizens of European countries and members of the global civil society signed below, hereby resolve to:

• Welcome the candidate status that the European Union has offered to Ukraine and urge the European institutions to move ahead as fast as possible and not delay additional support to the country expeditiously within the context of the ongoing war. The political leadership of the EU member states and EU institutions must maximize their efforts to help lay the foundation for building a resilient democracy in Ukraine and preparing for its full-fledged EU membership. While the EU should use the leverage of accession to deepen Ukrainian democracy and unblock necessary reforms, it must not overburden Ukraine with very technical conditionality that the country cannot be expected to fulfil in its current situation. Rather than use such conditionality as a pretext to slow down the accession process, EU member states should establish a realistic timeframe with clear and achievable milestones for Ukraine to become a full-fledged member of the EU as soon as possible.
• Request that the EU play a leading role in mobilizing global resources for rebuilding Ukraine. This planned massive effort should be seen not just as an investment in Ukrainian society and economy but also as a way to invest in the EU’s internal market and economic future. Embracing the prospect of Ukraine’s future membership should be regarded as a step towards securing the EU’s own economic interests in Ukraine.
• Ask the global democratic community to invest in a better and more prosperous future for Ukraine. The will of the Ukrainian people to overcome the current nightmares will be strengthened by the solidarity of the world’s democracies and by the prospect of democratic renewal and a better future for their children. The reconstruction efforts should help write a chapter of hope for Ukraine after this devastating war. The mutual ownership of both the democratic international community and the Ukrainian people should be ensured through the joint oversight and accountability of the reconstruction process, ensuring the effective and meaningful use of funds provided by international donors.
• State that while the international community’s reconstruction aid will of course focus on physical rebuilding, it must also include much higher levels of funding for democracy support. The formidable challenges of rebuilding should not be an excuse for pushing back democratic reforms. Rather, the reconstruction process must be fully inclusive and designed to reinforce Ukraine’s democracy. Its accession to the EU, as well as the reconstruction process, must include working with Ukrainian civil society to strengthen the country’s democratic institutions and media.
• Finally, we ask for justice. The fact that the brutal Russian attack has been aimed at the extermination of Ukrainian self-determination and its national identity, together with the mass slaughter of noncombatants and civilians, leads inevitably to the question of whether Russia has committed crimes against humanity and genocide. If it is determined that Russia has committed such crimes, they must not go unpunished. The system of international justice must be mobilized and shown to work. We call upon the leaders of the world’s democracies and all who consider themselves to be part of the “civilized world” to take decisive measures to ensure that possible crimes against humanity will be thoroughly investigated and that those found guilty of having committed war crimes and genocide will be held accountable and punished.

The agenda for democracy and reconstruction that we have laid out cannot be realized if the war is allowed to become a bloody and protracted stalemate. It is urgent that the United States and Europe continue providing Ukraine with the weapons it needs to take the offensive and expel Russia from the territories it has occupied since 2014. By giving Ukraine candidate status, Europe now has a greater stake than ever before in Ukraine’s joining the EU as a secure, sovereign, and democratic state, not as a truncated country crippled by frozen conflicts in Russian-occupied territories that will threaten Ukraine’s survival and the security of neighbouring states. The defeat of Russia’s aggression is a precondition for a whole, free, and peaceful Europe. And the victory of Ukraine will renew the promise of democracy for people across the world.

You can sign the Manifesto on this link.