The European Union has promised Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and Moldova two billion euros, but will not accept it.
The Eastern Partnership summit was held in Brussels, in which the leaders of all EU countries, as well as Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and Moldova, took part. Formally, Belarus also took part in the summit, but instead of representatives of Minsk there was a symbolic empty space, a sign and a flag.
For more than ten years of its history, the Eastern Partnership has not played a large role in attempts to resolve conflicts in the EU’s neighboring countries. But the sixth summit showed that the situation was beginning to change. Correspondent.net tells the details.
Ukraine demands sanctions against Russia before attack
At the summit of the Eastern Partnership, which took place on December 15, much attention was paid to the escalating conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
At the final press conference, President of the European Council Charles Michel once again warned that in the event of further military aggression by Moscow against Ukraine, there would be a “strong response” and a “high price” would have to be paid.
The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky devoted most of his meetings on the sidelines of the summit to this topic. He convinced his colleagues from the EU that new sanctions against Russia should be introduced before a possible escalation, because, in his opinion, this would prevent an increase in tensions.
“It seems to me that we were able to explain to our European colleagues that, to be honest, no one is interested in the sanctions policy after the escalation. Our state is interested in the powerful sanctions policy before the probable escalation – and then, it seems to me, there may not be a probable escalation,” – said Zelensky.
The President of Ukraine devoted about an hour and a half to meetings with the new German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron.
“It is clear that we are talking about de-escalation, about ensuring transparency as to what the purpose of the movements is. [российских] troops. The point is not to add fuel to the fire, “- explained the purpose of the meeting, the representative of the German government Steffen Hebeshtreit.
We reaffirm our support to Ukraine, its territorial integrity, and its sovereignty.
Any military aggression against #Ukraine will be met with a strong answer, and those responsible for the aggressions will pay a high price.#EaPsummit #StrongerTogether pic.twitter.com/b1WSsiX8pn
– Charles Michel (@eucopresident) December 15, 2021
Zelensky is ready to negotiate with Moscow in any format
Following this conversation, Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked his colleagues for the strong support of Ukraine against the background of the military threat from the Russian Federation and confirmed his readiness to continue working in the Normandy format.
When Zelenskiy was asked to comment on Scholz’s statement about his desire to open a “dialogue window” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he replied:
“It seems to me that (it will be – ed.) It’s cold enough. To open windows like this, you need to understand exactly what is outside the windows. If the chancellor asked me, we have long been neighbors and know each other well with our colleagues from Russia – I would tell him that first you need to find out what is there – snow or rain, and whether you are welcome. “
The Ukrainian leader discussed security issues with colleagues from other countries of the European Union.
“We are considering five ways of reaction (EU – ed.) To a possible escalation. We said that our state does not have five reactions, we will have only one reaction – we demonstrated it in 2014, when we defended our territory with weapons in our hands,” he warned.
Zelensky also expressed a desire for the United States to play one of the main roles in the process of resolving the situation in Donbass, but that this process should proceed with obligatory consultations with Ukraine and with its participation.
“We are ready for trilateral summits, but we cannot resolve something with Ukraine without Ukraine,” Zelensky said.
At the same time, the Ukrainian president stressed that he was ready to negotiate with Russia in any format for the sake of resolving the situation in Donbass.
Sanctions are promised, but so far only in words
The European Union, in turn, called on Moscow to defuse the situation on the Ukrainian border.
“We call on Russia to promote de-escalation and refrain from any further aggressive acts. No one should have any doubts that the European Union will respond to any aggression against Ukraine,” said the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, following the summit.
However, the final declaration of the Eastern Partnership does not contain references to Russia or sanctions against it. At the same time, the document states that the next summit will take place only two years later – in 2023.
“[Он] will be the first step to assess and review the implementation of a new generation of priorities and goals, “the declaration says.
The European Union, as stated in the document, continues to advocate the preservation of sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity within the internationally recognized borders of all Eastern Partnership countries.
It also said about the constant desire to strengthen democracy and the rule of law, and that the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms remains the main goal of cooperation within this format.
On the eve of the summit, Bloomberg reported about disagreements among EU countries over sanctions against Russia. According to the agency, which cites European diplomatic sources, Germany, France, Italy and Spain insist that it is more important to negotiate with Moscow, rather than warn it about “painful economic measures.”
However, other EU member states believe that public support for the new sanctions is more effective in “holding back Putin.”
According to one of the sources of the agency, representatives of several countries, including the Netherlands, Eastern European and Scandinavian states, asked the European Commission to discuss with them the document being developed with options for possible sanctions.
Not just close neighbours but true partners. #EasternPartnership Summit pic.twitter.com/urlTNfi6qx
– Charles Michel (@eucopresident) December 15, 2021
However, Germany and the countries that support it believe that it is necessary to wait for Russia’s actions and prepare a concrete response. These states emphasize that “painful measures will be taken in the event of an invasion,” but they doubt whether they need to be worked out in detail in advance, “given the uncertainty of Putin’s intentions,” the agency writes.
However, on December 16, the head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, said that Brussels is working on a new package of sanctions against Russia and this issue will be discussed at the summit today.
“I cannot say that (what kind of sanctions), we are going to discuss this before we come to an agreement, but we are preparing a full set of sanctions,” he said.
At the same time, Borrell is confident that the EU countries will be able to reach a consensus on this issue. “Yes, this time yes,” he said.
Security cooperation
Security issues received a more expressive role in the final declaration of the summit – which, in particular, Ukraine was striving for, DW notes… So, the document says about the intention to support the peaceful resolution of conflicts, as well as to prevent them.
The communiqué also refers to the strengthening of cooperation in the field of security, as well as dialogues and practical cooperation within the framework of the Common Security and Defense Policy of the EU.
The document also promises exercises on cybersecurity and countering hybrid threats. The declaration also welcomes the EU’s efforts to prevent conflicts, resolve them, and build confidence.
As you know, recently the European Union has tried to help resolve not only the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Thus, on the sidelines of the summit, negotiations were held with the participation of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and the President of the European Council. Michelle assists the EU in the delimitation and demarcation of the border.
Aliyev and Pashinyan agreed that in order to start negotiations on delimitation and demarcation, “further tangible steps should be taken to reduce tensions,” the European Council said in a statement.
This may not sound like a big deal, but one EU official told DW that the atmosphere at the summit was “positive.” According to him, the leaders of the EU countries noted the events in Brussels “as a very positive development after 30 years of conflict.”
Significant meeting this evening with @azpresident and @NikolPashinyan in Brussels.
Direct dialogue is needed to promote peace, stability and prosperity in the region. pic.twitter.com/fxDotz7PhS
– Charles Michel (@eucopresident) December 14, 2021
The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky is of the same opinion. “Today was one very important historical warm moment. We greeted our colleagues from Azerbaijan and Armenia – today the atmosphere of their dialogue was quite positive,” he said and added that this is “a great achievement on the part of the EU and personally Charles Michel.”
Zelensky expressed the hope that “someday it will be so in the war between Ukraine and Russia.”
Michel acted as a mediator in the conflict between the authorities and the opposition in Georgia. In addition, on December 15, the EU and Moldova signed an agreement on the allocation of 60 million euros by Brussels to Chisinau to overcome the gas crisis, which is exacerbated by the conflict with Gazprom.
European aspirations
Despite the fact that the Eastern Partnership, in the logic of Brussels, is an integral part of the neighborhood policy, and not of the enlargement policy, the countries included in the format do not agree with this.
So, Zelensky previously said that they do not hide their skeptical attitude towards the Eastern Partnership. A year ago, he openly told EU leaders that this initiative would be useful for Ukraine only if it brings it closer to membership. This position is shared by Georgia.
The statement following the summit says that the European Union “recognizes the European aspirations and European choice” of some of the Eastern Partnership countries, but there are no promises regarding the admission of these countries to the EU in the document – just as there were none in the communiqué of the previous five summits.
Note that now even the Balkan countries – Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Albania, which, unlike the eastern six, are official candidates for the EU, do not know when they will be admitted to the union, or whether they will be admitted at all.
An ambitious investment plan
The EU has announced plans to invest over two billion euros in the Eastern Partnership countries. Michel noted that this ambitious economic and investment plan is intended to have a significant impact on society.
Back in July, the European Commission drew up a new investment program, according to which the partner countries will be able to receive 2.3 billion euros by 2027.
This money will go to support half a million small and medium-sized enterprises, to reconstruct roads, fight corruption, support the independent press and non-governmental organizations, and similar goals.
At the same time, the EU, in accordance with its usual practice, will allocate money on terms of co-financing and hopes that the countries of the Eastern Partnership will thus be able to attract to European projects many times more funds than the 2.3 billion euros themselves.
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