RSS

Ukraine has three main opportunities for relations with the European Union:

1. European Neighborhood Policy
2. Eastern Partnership
3. EU-Ukraine bilateral relations

Each of them provides Partner States with several a lot of possibilities. Yet, from the Ukrainian point of view not all of them are acceptable, given its aspirations regarding relations with the EU.

When the ENP was adopted in 2004, Ukraine declared that it was being put into a status of countries more interested in financial gifts than in deepening cooperation with the EU, with the aim of future full integration.

This policy increased the number of euro-skeptics among politicians and experts; and, furthermore, supplies additional arguments to those who are ready to blame the EU for double standards and the arbitrary use of membership criteria.

Seeing ENP as an alternative to the EU enlargement, Ukraine rejected the policy and welcomed an active position of the new Member States, such as Poland and Lithuania, which are interested in maintaining and developing relations with Ukraine, going over ENP frameworks.

Besides the lack of EU membership perspectives, the ENP does not foresee the introduction of a visa-free regime between the EU and Partner States, which was one of Ukrain's prime goals in relations with the EU.

Ukraine welcomed the new initiative offered by Poland and Sweden, the Eastern Partnership. The reasons were clear: it provides more integration capabilities, such as an Association Agreement, a free trade area, and visa liberalization towards the possibility of a full visa-free regime.

At the same time, Ukraine clearly declared that the Eastern Partnership is considered only as an additional or auxiliary instrument to bilateral relations between the EU and Ukraine and could not replace them in spheres where Ukraine is looking for wider cooperation.

Bilateral relations continue to top the agenda regarding the EU-Ukraine relationship. Ukraine aims to have further cooperation with EU according regarding 7 priorities: energy; trade and investments; justice and home affairs; approximation of Ukrainian legislation to EU standards; environment; transport; trans-border cooperation; and collaboration in the sphere of science, technology and space.

Making use of the opportunities provided by the Eastern Partnership, Ukraine should aim to achieve the following:

Short term goals:

1. Association Agreement partly agreed upon with plans for ratification;
2. EU-Ukraine energy cooperation, for example, in the framework of the European Energy Community and other formats with the general aim of preventing further energy security violations;
3. Continuation of internal reforms;

Middle term goals:

1. Establish a free trade area;
2. Agree upon conditions for the introduction of a visa-free regime.

The long term goal remains unchanged – joining the European Union.

Why is it so important? Everyone in Ukraine must understand the final goal - of course not determined by a specific timeframe, but as the politically, economically and culturally determined approach.

One serious implication seems to be the fact that Russia is not included into the Eastern Partnership. For several reasons, its reaction to this Initiative could only be negative:

• EaP aims to strengthen relations with countries seen by Russia as within its sphere of influence in terms of political, economic and cultural relations;
• Russia will not be seen as an equal partner with smaller countries, but only as an “older brother” with the right to order music (i.e., the Common Market between former Soviet Union states);
• A multi-polar world means three big players, namely the US, EU and Russia. So, the competition between them concerning, among other things, influence over Eastern European countries will grow.

In conclusion, it is clear that the EU has to choose between following: expand its own principles on neighboring countries or respect the influence of neighboring countries, such as Russia.

Andrey Chubyk works for the Center for Global Studies "Strategy XXI," a Kiyv-based think tank specializing in energy security affairs.