Political and Legal Perspectives of the EU Eastern Partnership Policy

An official definition for the core theme of the given book has been given by the European Union External Action:

This article examines the problem of the ENP countries’ integration with the EU market from two perspectives: the macroeconomic situation as an integral component of the overall transformation process and the integration with the EU markets, and the political economy of the regional integration perspectives of these countries. This methodological approach serves as a tool for integrating a number of main goals related to the EU’s soft power that require the development and support of civil society in the neighbouring states. This contribution aims to offer insight in the implementation of the regional arrangements, taking into consideration new political and economic realities in the Eurasian Single Economic Space; it examines these implications in relation to the need to expand and adapt the content and approach of the AAs/DCFTAs agreements. The further economic development in the regions of Eastern Europe and Caucasus as a precondition for the prosperity and security of countries and of the region is discussed. The article concludes that the ENP has inevitably become more important due to the new borders of the EU to the East and the emergence of the Eurasian Economic Union.

This chapter analyses how ICT policy is reflected in the Eastern Partnership (EaP) framework and what governance instruments it employs. The analysis is based on the review of relevant policy and legal documents. The contribution traces stages of the development of the ICT policy in the EaP framework from 2009 to early 2015. The analysis indicates that the ICT policy develops in stages. Each subsequent policy programming cycle extends and expands the ICT issues across various spheres of the EaP. Thus, the ICT policy is becoming increasingly important and a mainstream policy area in the overall EaP. The chapter argues that the enhanced ICT cooperation within the EaP is linked to the growing significance of ICT in the EU internal policies promoting the Information Society and Digital Single Market. The main argument of this chapter is that to further strengthen cooperation in ICT matters within the EaP, the EU should focus on the greater involvement of stakeholders of different levels, the dissemination of information and best practices, the promotion of cooperation between the EaP partners and more flexibility through the use of various policy and governance instruments in the EaP toolbox.

The Eastern Partnership is based on such core democratic values as the rule of law, respect for human rights, good governance, sound civil society and free media. One of the Partnership's key objectives is to increase the level of association with EU policies based on common values - such as the rule of law and respect for human rights - and eventually make the entire region more democratic and stable. The Association Agreement is seen as a special democratisation instrument for deeper association, however, without promising the EU membership. The question is whether or not the Partnership’s democratisation agenda has any impact on the actual state of democracy in this region. To answer this and other questions, the paper examines the language of the Partnership’s key official documents, along with the EU’s relevant development cooperation programmes. The goal is to find out (a) how friendly they are in terms of democratic rhetoric, (b) whether the democratisation potential of digital ICTs is taken into account and (c) whether there is a correlation between being a partner country and being democratic. The paper concludes that, overall, being merely a partner country is not sufficient for making democratic progress. It is the Association Agreement that prompts deeper democratisation. The current scope of the ongoing democratisation programmes is rather traditional and does not include the benefits of digital democracy to engage with ordinary citizens as key beneficiaries of democracy promotion initiatives. The field of democratic citizenship and political participation, where such benefits can be most strongly felt, is recommended for inclusion into such initiatives.

Estonia is a globally recognised leader in e-governance, having bypassed many countries when it comes to development of public e-services as well as e-democracy. From having been at the receiving end of international assistance and advice only a couple of decades ago, Estonia is now sharing its expertise—not least with Eastern Partnership countries for which it is especially well placed, sharing common history. The introduction of e-governance presents questions on what legal reforms or new laws that are necessary to support the technological process and also fundamental and principled questions related to values and attitudes to governance. Is it possible with the help of e-governance to export principles of good governance? In this chapter, the question is seen from the side of the exporter as well as from the side of the recipients, primarily Moldova and Ukraine. Details of e-governance transition in these countries is described, and it is discussed what it is that makes countries receptive to assistance to further good governance and democracy.

Family law has in the EU a special status. EU secondary law does not regulate it directly, but principles of EU primary law are applicable as much as they do not harm the culture and traditions of member states. When EaP states want to approach the EU principles, then they have to consider the position and development of EU family law as well. The article compares the EU concept of family life and marriage to the following EaP states. Based on the analyses of the constitutions and family law acts of EaP states, author discusses if EaP states are progressive or conservative states in EU context in this respect. These analyses will support the development of family law policies in EaP states as they give a current legal description of the general principles of family life in EU law and the direction the EaP states should choose when working out the new policy of family relations.

Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova turn into the eastern neighbours of the European Union after the 2004 EU enlargement. They have become frontline countries of migration control of the EU. All these countries are considered to be countries of origin, destination and transit of migrants. EU Eastern Partnership policy is also dedicated to increasing the capacity of these countries to control migration flows. The membership of EU for these countries also depends on the capacity to control the borders.

This chapter highlights the migration control issues in Ukraine, Moldova and Belorussia in connection with Eastern Partnership, the European Neighbourhood Policy and the Copenhagen criteria; highlights the importance of the external dimension of the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice; and explains the EU neighbourhood policy and management of migration. Additionally to the effective border control, new members must fulfil the Copenhagen criteria, and it applies also to the migration management principles and values.

According to the European Union’s primary law, the Union has been mandated with the promotion and protection of environment inside and outside of her territory. In the absence of effective international environmental conventions, the EU has been left with few options in fulfilling her environmental protection mandate. First, it can take the initiator and become a global leader in the elaboration of international environmental agreements. Second, the EU has the option of establishing export standards which subjects all exports of the Union to third countries to internal market’s environmental standards. Third, the EU can set the same standards for imported products from third countries. The final option is to form regional agreements between the EU and third countries and follow the goal of environmental protection at regional level. The current chapter will focus on the last option and efforts of the EU to promote environmental protection standards outside her territories in the framework of the Eastern Partnership Program. This paper studies the environmental status quo and challenges which EaP partner countries are facing, as well as the effects of EU approximation on the environment and climate change of the above-mentioned countries. The paper also describes the tools that are used by the EU in order to implement her environmental initiatives in EaP countries and that are necessary for achieving the most from the application of such tools in each country and at regional level.

This contribution analyses the constitutional challenges which are likely to arise before Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia in the course of implementation of the Association Agreements (AAs) with the European Union (EU) into their legal systems. The contribution focuses on two major challenges to this intricate process. The first challenge is how to ensure effective implementation and application of the AAs within the Ukrainian, Moldovan and Georgian legal orders. The second challenge is how to solve potential conflicts between the AAs and the Constitutions of Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. It is concluded that the AAs will serve as a template for further political and economic reforms in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia and will contribute to the integration of these countries into the European legal space.

The chapter is devoted to the study of the Ukrainian crisis as a challenge for the EU Eastern Partnership. The hybrid war waged by Russia against Ukraine in Donbass, as well as the occupation and illegal annexation of Crimean peninsula by the Russian Federation, has led to a situation in which the traditional EU intentions toward the EaP came into dissonance with the new realities. These new challenges for the EaP require а proper response from the EU. Actually, this response could have been gleaned on the eve of the Riga Summit. Significant attention is paid to Ukraine’s expectations, the Russian factor, and the prospects of reforming the Eastern Partnership. The necessity of further differentiation of groups of countries according to the goals of their cooperation with the EU and for a clearer definition of their membership prospects that within such a differentiation becomes more appropriate is put forward in the chapter.

The fate of the EU–Ukraine Association Agreement—although finally signed between March and June 2014—shows in a nutshell the nature of the more than 20 years of approximation between the European Union and Ukraine: a series of ambitious leaps towards the west but few of them strong enough to not to be pulled back by the lack of respective legal implementation, legal reforms and—last but not least—the lack of will. Much has been written about the weal and woe of Ukraine’s Europeanisation, and literature will even increase after the ongoing escalations of this year will hopefully have ended soon. Still, less has been written about what has been achieved already in terms of legal harmonisation, especially in a field much less touched by politics, as it is the law of obligations—in spite of an obvious need for both academics and practitioners. This article therefore provides a comparison of the Ukrainian law of obligations with European harmonisation initiatives—here represented by the Draft Common Frame of Reference (DCFR)—and aims at pointing out these fields of law, where further approximation could be obtained.

Georgia is an interesting example to analyze among Eastern Partnership countries due to the variety of complex political processes taking place in the country. Georgia has been one of the most successful partners within EaP initiative, achieving considerable success in implementing policies and following the European Union integration path. However, a set of obstacles has remained for Georgia on its Western route. Continuous reluctance in European capitals toward further enlargement of the EU, especially with regard to countries belonging to Russia’s immediate neighborhood, has delayed the integration process. Security threats throughout the Eastern partnership region, coupled with fears of clashing with Moscow, have seemingly caused certain unease among certain member states to invest fully in the enlargement process vis-à-vis the region. Furthermore, shift of power in Georgia has raised a few questions in European circles regarding the country’s future commitment to the European goals, and therefore understanding these developments correctly is vital for EU–Georgia relations and Georgia as a country. This chapter therefore aims to analyze recent political developments in Georgia and their influence on the country’s relations with the EU.

At a time when Georgia’s aspiration to become an insider of the EU is not achievable in the nearest future, probably one of the most teasing proposals made by the EU was promising visa-free travel by first delivering the Visa Facilitation and Readmission Agreements and starting a dialogue on this subject, which later was followed by VLAP. Clinging to the idea, authorities as well as the media gave it a huge resonance, causing society to think that the EU is nearer than ever. However, fulfilling certain requirements under VLAP showed that neither authorities nor the public is quite ready to endorse and fully accept some paramount values. Georgia’s struggle on its way to Europe will be discussed on the examples of adoption and implementation of anti-discrimination and personal data protection laws as part of VLAP.

Self-regulation as a voluntary mechanism is the key instrument in any democratic state to keep the media accountable to the public and to increase the quality of media products, credibility, and the trust. The core of the professional journalists includes the commitment to truth, loyalty to the audience, the permanent verification of information, and the maintenance of independence during performance of the job. Given the importance of self-regulation, the article aims at analyzing the Georgian self-regulatory mechanisms and decision-making process and comparing them with European standards. The analyses show that the self-regulatory mechanisms in Georgia are characterized by several deficiencies, and there is still a long way for establishing effective, professional and sustainable self-regulatory bodies, which will guarantee the professionalism and independence of the Georgian media. Therefore, the article includes recommendations deriving from the best European practices. (Cp. Unesco, professionalism, journalism and self-regulation, 2011)

Romanian-speaking TV in the former Soviet Republic of Moldova is currently developing an infotainment genre that is politically charged and rooted in the history of modern Romanian literary culture. Choosing the EU over the Eurasian Customs Union comes across as a matter of ethnic and cultural background. The republic’s ethno-national traditions and the political loyalties of Moldovan citizens overlap to the extent to which TV entertainment, whether in Russian or in Romania, is bound to touch on contentious issues. The first privately owned TV station of Moldova, JurnalTV, and its Sunday evening show, Ora de Ras (The Hour of Reckoning, my translation) make a strong case for Europe. Making the country modern and European has everything to do with its past as recorded in the language of history. The ancient roots of Moldovans, their continuous settlement of the area and struggle for freedom are preached by the hero of all Moldovans, Stephen the Great, not to mention present-day media heroes (Constantin Cheianu and Anatol Durbala) who blow the whistle on corruption in local and national government.

Innovation is the key driving factor for economic growth and social wealth. Innovative products and services emerge more often as a result of cross-sectorial combination of technologies, design and business models. Schumpeter (The theory of economic development: an inquiry into profits, capital, credit, interest, and the business cycle. New Brunswick, New Jersey 1934: Translated from the 1911 original German, Theorie der wirtschaftlichen Entwicklung, 1911) emphasised that it is important to constantly revise economic structures in order to get better or more effective processes and products, introducing his famous word—“creative destruction”.

The European Union is one of the leading places on innovation in the world, but the innovation position of Europe is not so homogeneous due to its existing diversity. In order to better link the innovation activities all over continental Europe, the Eastern Europe Partnership (EaP) was launched in 2004 to develop a closer relationship with EU countries and their neighbouring countries to ensure improved cooperation and integration of innovation activities and related markets of involved countries.

This paper highlights the current situation and ongoing activities within the frame of the EU Eastern Innovation cooperation as it has to do with innovation within the Baltic States and Finland (which is on the one hand side) using Russia to mirror the EaP countries (on the other hand side).