Ukraine, once seen as the flagship country of the Eastern Partnership (EaP), today lags behind Moldova and Georgia in many aspects, experts say
Ukraine, once seen as the flagship country of the Eastern Partnership (EaP), today lags behind Moldova and Georgia in many aspects. This was highlighted in the pilot edition of the European Integration Index for Eastern Partnership Countries that was presented on December 12 in Kyiv and before that on November 30 in Poznan during the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum. The study was initiated and prepared by the International Renaissance Foundation’s European Program and East-East: Partnership Beyond Borders Program in cooperation with Open Society Foundations.
Iryna Solonenko, the editor of the report and director of IRF’s European Program, noted that compared with other Eastern Partnership countries, Ukraine shows the greatest gap between intensity and depth of ties with the EU (Linkage dimension), on one hand, and the degree of approximation with EU standards and requirements (Approximation dimension), on the other.
Commenting on the section of the Index dealing with Freedom, Security and Justice, Research Director of the Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation Oleksandr Sushko said: “Ukraine took the right steps, a number of necessary laws were passed – on refugees, foreigners and stateless persons, and the Concept on Migration Policy was created. It’s now a matter of implementing these progressive laws.”
In turn, Ihor Burakovsky, Director of the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting, stressed that one of the key European integration problems in Ukraine is unequal business conditions. “If there are unequal conditions for Ukrainian businessmen, then it’s obvious that there can be problems for European business in Ukraine,” said the expert. Another serious problem, in his opinion, is the quality of use of budget funds in Ukraine, which also doesn’t meet European standards.
Executive Director of the International Renaissance Foundation Yevhen Bystrytsky recalled that before the EU-Ukraine Summit scheduled for December 19, leading Ukrainian NGOs appealed to the European Union to initial the Association Agreement with Ukraine, and urged the Ukrainian government to recognize and guarantee the principles of rule of law and judicial independence. This appeal was supported by the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum. “If the Agreement is not initialed, then it will be very difficult for civil society to find leverages in order to demand that the government support a European course of development and reforms in Ukraine,” he said.
The European Integration Index for Eastern Partnership Countries will track the progress of Eastern Partnership countries — Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine — on an annual basis. It provides a nuanced cross-country and cross-sector picture that is comparative. More than 30 experts from the EU and the EaP countries are involved in the project.
European Program
Iryna Solonenko
(044) 461 95 00
solonenko@irf.ua
***
The Goal of the European Program is to promote Ukraine’s European integration by providing financial and expert support to relevant civil society initiatives.
