The Office of the President of Ukraine proposed its version of the procedure for selecting judges of the Constitutional Court, which differs from the one called for by the European Union.
Andrii Smirnov, deputy head of the president's office, said this in an interview with Liga.net.
The reform of the CCU is one of the criteria that Ukraine must fulfill for further rapprochement with the EU. Ukraine should introduce the procedure for the selection of judges of the CCU in accordance with the recommendations of the Venice Commission.
"Venetsianka" recommended to include in the advisory group of experts, which will check the candidates for the CCU, one more, the seventh member from international experts. This seventh independent expert should eliminate political influence on the selection committee.
According to Smirnov, a large number of people's deputies are afraid that the seventh member of the group from internationals will mean excessive interference in the discretion of the subjects of appointment of judges of the CCU - the president, the Verkhovna Rada and the congress of judges. Therefore, OP offered their version, which, according to Smirnov, talks to international partners.
"Leave six members. Procedural decisions are made by a simple majority (four votes out of six). But at the same time, at least two internationalists must vote for the decision on compliance with the criteria of integrity and competence," explained Smirnov.
The deputy head of the EP says that he recently presented this version at a meeting with the IMF and "saw interest." If the alternative version is rejected, they will return to the first one with the seventh member from internationals, he noted.
"I set a deadline for myself, so that we put an end to this issue by the end of March," Smirnov concluded.
The European Commission expressed hope that Ukraine will fully take into account the recommendations of the Venice Commission to Law No. 7662 on the Constitutional Court.
Experts in the field of judicial reform warned that the version of the law adopted by the Council and signed by the president could make the Constitutional Court under the control of the authorities.