STRASBOURG, January 17. /ITAR-TASS/. PACE co-rapporteurs for Ukraine Marietta de Pourbaix-Lundin (Sweden) and Mailis Reps (Estonia) have appealed to Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich not to sign into law several “clearly undemocratic” bills approved by the Ukrainian parliament on January 16.

In their joint statement, which Itar-Tass received on Friday, they said “These laws run counter to the principles of freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and manifestation, as well as freedom of the media, and are quite frankly clearly undemocratic.”

“The enactment of these laws will only entrench the Euromaidan protests and increase the tension between authorities and opposition. As a result, a peaceful and democratic solution to the current political crisis seems further away than ever,” their report read.”This cannot have been the objective of the authorities”, the co-rapporteurs said.

“For that reason, we urge President Yanukovich not to sign these laws into force and to seek a negotiated solution to the political stand-off”, they concluded.

The situation in Ukraine may be put for discussion at the upcoming session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, due from January 27 to January 31. The PACE co-rapporterus for Ukraine intend to visit Kiev in mid-February.