Government of Ukraine

Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Thursday pays a working visit to Ukraine during which he will have meetings with his counterpart Arseniy Yatsenyuk and with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

The Moldovan counterpart Iurie Leanca and the Romanian chief diplomat Titus Corlatean will be accompanying the Romanian Prime Minister on the visit to Kiev.

...

EU states' foreign ministers have given the green light to an arrangement between Russia and the EU under which integration with Ukraine will be postponed for a year.

Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko said he would present a broad plan of social and economic reforms which would allow the country to apply for membership of the EU in six years

Bulgaria on Wednesday welcomed the ratification of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement which it expects will help Kiev build strong political and economic ties with the bloc.

Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk accused Russia of trying to destroy Ukraine as an independent country and attempting to restore the USSR, reports Reuters. 

In Yatsenyuk's words, only NATO could defend Ukraine from external aggression. 

Ukraine "not ready to join EU or NATO"

MOSCOW -- Ukraine is not ready to join the European Union or NATO, Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka has said.

"Ukraine is not ready to join the EU or NATO. Both organizations should be giving realistic hopes to Ukraine,” Sobotka told the Czech media, according to RIA Novosti.

Prime Minister Vctor Ponta wishes "Happy Birthday!" to the Ukrainian people, on the occasion of the Independence Day, also assuring them of the entire Romania's and the EU's support.

Ukraine's legislature, the Verkhovna Rada, has turned down the resignation Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk submitted earlier in July.

Yatsenyuk announced he was stepping down last week after the governing coalition collapsed due to the decision of two of its parties, UDAR and Svoboda, to quit.

Russia said Wednesday it had approved the candidacy of the former US ambassador to Kiev as Washington's new envoy to Moscow, at a time of sharply heightened tensions over Ukraine.
      

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has proposed to appoint regional representatives to oversee human rights violations and constitutional infringements.

The scope of the representatives’ mission is outlined in the draft constitutional amendment, which will be submitted to the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) on Thursday, Interfax agency revealed.