Crisis and EU foreign policy / Working Paper
The EU' s Eastern Partnership: One year backwards
17/05/2010 By Jos Boonstra, Natalia Shapovalova
In May 2009, the EU launched the Eastern Partnership, a new policy to bring its Eastern neighbours closer and transform their economies and societies. The initiative was timely in the face of the worsening political, economic and security situation in the region.
This paper analyses the EU’s performance and its potential as a transformative power in the region, as perceived by the Eastern partners themselves. It appears that European efforts to encourage reform will continue to be unsuccessful. The incentives offered by the Eastern Partnership are insufficient.
Authoritarian regimes such as Azerbaijan and Belarus do not want to change; they simply seek the economic benefits of cooperation with the EU. However, the European Union can make a change in countries struggling for democracy and EU membership such as Ukraine or Moldova; but so far, the Eastern Partnership has not offered these countries what they aspire to. A strategic EU vision for its periphery remains elusive.
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Keywords
Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Civil society Democracy promotion Democratisation Eastern Partnership (EaP) EU European Union Georgia Moldova UkraineRelated publications
- The democracy promotion policies of Central and Eastern European states
- The EU's Eastern partnership: still-born?
- The future of the Eastern Partnership: Challenges and Opportunities
Bio author: Jos Boonstra
Central Asia. Eastern Europe. The Balkans. Caucasus. CSDP.NATO.OSCE.Security Sector Reform. Eastern Partnership.
Bio author: Natalia Shapovalova
Ukraine. Eastern Partnership. EU enlargement. Russia. Caucasus.
