[JURIST] Ukraine [official website] held a parliamentary election [press release] on Sunday which resulted in large support for pro-Western parties. President Petro Poroshenko’s [official website] Bloc party, which has been known to be a pro-European political party, received the most support [AP report]. President Poroshenko stated in regards to the outcome, “I hope that we will have new Government, Parliament and pro-European coalition just like new Ukraine and new President we already have after the Revolution of Dignity.” Approximately 36 million Ukrainians were registered to vote, with 22.2 percent of the vote in favor of the president’s Bloc party. Some speculate that the support for the Bloc party and other pro-European parties could continue to fuel the tension between the Ukraine and Russia.

The crisis in the Ukraine [JURIST news archive] has continued to escalate over recent months with no immediate end in sight. Earlier this week Amnesty International [advocacy website] reported [JURIST report] extra-judicial killings by both pro-Russian separatists and pro-Kyiv forces in eastern Ukraine. Earlier this month, the Ukrainian government enacted [JURIST report] five anti-corruption laws to promote government accountability within the country. In early October the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights [official website] warned [JURIST report] that human rights abuses were still prevalent within the Ukraine. In September the Ukrainian government ratified [JURIST report] an agreement with the EU granting autonomy to the eastern regions of the state in order to reform the country in accordance with EU standards and values.