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Ukraine has “crossed the Rubicon” to a new westward-looking future that leaves behind the darkness of its Russian past, President Petro Poroshenko said Wednesday in a moving, historic address to a joint session of Parliament.

Amid waves of thunderous applause from gathered MPs and senators, Prime Minister Stephen Harper welcomed Poroshenko, who lauded Canada for its unwavering support of Ukraine, not just in recent months but over the years as well.

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Earlier this week, Poroshenko signed a co-operation agreement with the European Union that will deepen economic and political ties and help cement Ukraine’s focus towards Europe and away from Russia.

That was a Rubicon Ukraine crossed and we never, ever turn back to our awful past

“You know that I felt … that was the last farewell from Ukraine to the Soviet Union,” Poroshenko said.

“That was a Rubicon Ukraine crossed and we never, ever turn back to our awful past.”

It was a decision last fall by former president Viktor Yanukovych to abandon an EU co-operation pact in favour of closer ties with Russia that sparked the popular uprising and plunged Ukraine into months of turmoil.