EU puts Ukraine on notice over polls

(BRUSSELS) - The European Union said Monday it will watch events in the Ukraine closely after polls marred by shortcomings, and called on the authorities to ensure that all due electoral procedures are now followed.

Ukraine's ruling Regions Party claimed victory Monday over allies of jailed ex-premier Yulia Tymoshenko as observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) condemned Sunday's elections as a step backwards.

EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton and EU commissioner for enlargement Stefan Fule said they noted the observers' initial findings, which presented a "mixed picture with several shortcomings.

"The final assessment will... depend on the post-electoral developments which we will watch closely," they said in a joint statement.

"It is therefore particularly important that the... authorities ensure a proper conduct in the coming stages of the electoral process, notably as regards the remaining vote count, tabulation of results and following up on possible electoral complaints."

Ashton and Fule, alluding to Tymoshenko, also reiterated their "regret that the consequences of trials that did not respect international standards have prevented opposition representatives from standing."

They said the authorities should "address this matter and take further steps to reform the judiciary to avoid their recurrence."

The EU statement came after OSCE special coordinator Walburga Habsburg Douglas sharply criticised the conduct of the polls.

"Considering the abuse of power, and the excessive role of money in this election, democratic progress appears to have reversed in Ukraine," she said.

"One should not have to visit a prison to hear from leading political figures in the country."

Official results gave the Regions Party 33.2 percent of the vote against 23.2 percent for Tymoshenko's opposition party.

Tymoshenko's party said it had conducted a parallel count which showed the Regions Party leading her faction by a narrower margin of just over four percent -- an outcome which had also been predicted by exit polls.

"These elections were falsified from start to finish," Tymoshenko said in a statement read by her lawyer Sergiy Vlasenko, announcing that she would go on hunger strike in protest.