DutchNews.nl — If the Netherlands rejects the EU treaty with Ukraine at next month’s referendum it will have disastrous consequences for Europe as a whole, chairman Jean-Claude Juncker said during a speech in The Hague on Thursday.
Juncker made the comments while giving the annual Schmelzer lecture which is organised by the Christian Democratic party.
A ‘no’ vote in the Netherlands would destabilise Europe and that would be a very serious matter, Juncker said.
The treaty does not mean Ukraine will be admitted to the EU, he said. ‘We have gone too quickly in the past,’ he said. ‘We will not make the same mistake again.’
The Dutch should think carefully about how they vote, he said.
‘People should ask themselves, if everyone votes the way I do, what would the impact be on Europe?’ he said. The European Commission chairman gave a similar warning in an interview with the NRC in January.
The Dutch referendum is to approve or reject an EU agreement for closer relations with Ukraine, after 427,000 people backed a citizens’ initiative.
The Dutch parliament had already backed the EU deal, which removes trade barriers between the EU and Ukraine.
But campaigners fear that it could be a step towards EU membership and would cost Dutch taxpayers billions of euros.
“This is a chance to say we’re here too,” says Eurosceptic Thierry Baudet, who argues that Dutch voters should have their say on policies such as EU expansion, legislation and aid packages.
In particular he says the treaty would enable Ukrainians to travel without visas across Europe when their country is in conflict with Russia.
Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych triggered months of unrest in Ukraine and eventually his overthrow when he pulled back from signing the EU Association Agreement in November 2013.
Since then, Ukraine’s new government has signed the deal and parts of the treaty have provisionally come into place.
