Neighbourhood policy
Eastern partnership at a crossroads
After today's presentation of the progress reports on Neighbourhood policy, Greens/EFA foreign affairs spokesperson Werner Schulz commented on the state of play of the Eastern Partnership (for Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia):
"The progress reports show the whole range of the EU integration process, from Moldova and Ukraine that will soon be concluding an Association Agreement to Azerbaijan and Belarus that are still at the starting point of negotiations.
"Despite all the offers and efforts made over the last four years to align the six countries' standards and values with those of the EU, there have not yet been any tangible results. Thanks to the personal engagement of Commissioner Füle there are numerous creative initiatives in place that are aimed at easing internal crises in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. However the EU's room for manoeuvre remains limited since there is no political will or readiness for compromise within the political elites.
"EU policy towards the East is at a crossroads. The upcoming summit in November in Vilnius is supposed to be a major breakthrough but might now instead signal the breakdown of the Eastern Partnership as such. Füle's project of reshaping the post-soviet space by giving these countries a European perspective could collapse if the internal disputes continue.
"It is up to the political elites of the Partner countries in particular Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia to make their EU integration successful. It is time to deliver."
