US embassy cable - 04VILNIUS1437

C O N F I D E N T I A L VILNIUS 001437 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/NB AND EUR/UMB 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/23/2014 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, XH, LH, HT13 
SUBJECT: LITHUANIA CONDEMNS FRAUDULENT UKRAINIAN ELECTIONS; 
CALLS FOR CALM 
 
 
Classified By: POL/ECON OFFICER TREVOR BOYD 
FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) 
 
1. (C) Summary. Lithuanian government and parliamentary 
officials strongly condemned reports of fraud in Ukraine's 
second round of presidential elections.  Fully supporting the 
EU statement on the elections, they noted that Ukraine has 
apparently been deprived of an opportunity to demonstrate its 
willingness to integrate more closely with Euro-Atlantic 
institutions.  More than half of parliament signed a 
statement of solidarity in support of a "European Ukraine." 
Lithuania will likely continue to push for strong measures 
within the EU to condemn the results and sanction those 
responsible for electoral fraud.  End Summary. 
 
2. (U) Foreign Minister Antanas Valionis said in a November 
24 press interview that Ukraine should seek a "proper 
assessment of the results" of the second round of 
presidential voting, revising them if necessary, and he urged 
that it handle the current "complicated situation" in a 
"peaceful and civilized way."  Valionis observed that 
Lithuania agrees wholeheartedly with the EU view that the 
Ukrainian elections did not meet international standards. 
 
3. (C) Mindaugas Kacerauskis, head of MFA's Ukraine, Moldova 
and Belarus Division, told us that Lithuania is "very 
saddened" by the "tragic events" that unfolded during 
Sunday's election and fully supports the strong EU statement 
on the elections.  Kacerauskis added that Ukraine had lost an 
opportunity to demonstrate its willingness to more fully 
integrate in European and Euro-Atlantic organizations. 
Ricardis Degutis, Director of MFA's Eastern European and 
Central Asia Department, had earlier told the Ambassador that 
Lithuania is very concerned about reports of massive fraud 
perpetrated in the election.  Echoing Degutis's comments, 
Kacerauskis observed that some oblasts reported returns of 
participation by more than 100 percent of registered voters. 
While Lina Sucilaite, one of Lithuania's election monitors in 
the Zhitomir oblast, could not personally corroborate any 
instances of serious electoral fraud, she shared with us 
rumors of citizens receiving 50 gryvna (about USD 10) to use 
ballots pre-marked with Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych's 
name.  (Note:  Lithuanian sent seven election observers to 
both rounds of Ukraine's presidential elections). 
 
4. (U) 85 of Lithuania's 141 parliamentarians signed a letter 
authored by Conservative MP Rasa Jukneviciene on November 23 
to opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko expressing 
solidarity with the "aspirations of the Ukrainian nation to 
create a fair, European Ukraine."  Jukneviciene, clad in 
pro-Yushchenko orange during Tuesday's parliamentary session, 
said that it is important that Lithuania illustrate its 
support for a European Ukraine. 
 
5. (U) Liberal Centrist MEP Eugenijus Gentvilas released a 
statement November 24 expressing support for Ukraine's 
democratic forces and hope that calm will prevail in Kiev. 
Commenting that electoral violations "were obviously directed 
by Yanukovych's camp," Gentvilas' statement said that 
Ukraine's "pro-Moscow authorities led by Viktor Yanukovich" 
had tried to steal victory from Ukraine's people "to ensure 
that Ukraine cannot take its rightful place in the family of 
European states."  The statement praised efforts to 
"peacefully request" that Ukrainian authorities examine the 
election results. 
 
6. (C) Comment.  Lithuania's response is still a work in 
progress.  We expect the GOL to continue to press the issue 
of electoral fraud with the GOU both bilaterally and 
multilaterally.  Lithuania will likely join the chorus 
pushing the EU to formulate a coherent policy to provide 
incentives to Ukraine to conform to Western standards in its 
policies and practices as well as to punish those who 
perpetuated electoral fraud.  Lithuania's voice will be one 
more in the region that may give Ukraine's authorities, and 
Moscow, pause before continuing with their electoral fraud. 
MULL