President Backs Ukraine
Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski called on the European Union to support democratic reforms in Ukraine and bring the nation into the fold.
Kwasniewski supported Ukraine's efforts to join the EU while opening a two-day meeting of the Council of Europe in Warsaw.
"We must lend our support to all of those who want to live in accordance with European standards and democratic value in whatever region of our continent," Kwasniewski said.
The Council of Europe, founded in 1949 in Strasbourg, France, has become the continent's main human rights monitor.
The EU plans, however, to form its own human rights body and council officials asked for guidance about their future mission.
A number of major nations -- including England, France and Russia -- skipped the Council of Europe gathering as its influence wanes and the EU's grows, Voice of America reported.