by Stefan Nicola
Berlin (UPI) Apr 6, 2010
The Ukrainian president has dissolved the government’s commission working toward NATO membership, a sign that the country’s ambitious pro-NATO course is over.
Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych per decree dissolved the commission this week, in a move that buries the ambitious pro-NATO policies by his predecessor, Orange Revolution hero Viktor Yushchenko.
Yushchenko’s stark anti-Russian course helped Ukraine win new friends in Europe but angered Moscow and alienated the country’s Russian-speaking community. Under the new president, Ukraine could become a key link between both worlds, supporters of the new government hope.
Observers see the latest move as a bid to restart relations with Moscow, which strongly opposes Ukraine’s NATO ambitions.
A Ukrainian expert said the move could strain relations with NATO.
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