Support for Eastern Europe

The President of the Commission, José Manuel Barroso, speaks of the European Union’s “soft power” and “power of attraction”. But he vigorously rejects the thesis of “areas of influence”. This new “Eastern Partnership” represents a significant gamble for Barroso, who is investing in it not only a good deal of energy, but also a part of his political credibility. Flagship initiatives. The European Union is placing on the table 600 million euros for the period 2010-2013 to promote socio-economic reforms in six countries of Eastern Europe: Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus. But for this latter country, more than once defined at EU headquarters as “the continent’s last dictatorship”, a proviso is made: “The level of Belarus’ participation in the Eastern Partnership will depend on the overall development of EU-Belarus relations”. The proposal for an “Eastern Partnership”, presented by the Commission on 3 December, “has been accelerated – explains Barroso – by the Caucasian conflict this summer”. The document accompanying the launch of what is described as an ambitious new chapter in EU relations with its Eastern neighbours is illustrated by the head of the Executive himself and by the Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policy, Benita Ferrero-Waldner. Both speak of a “substantial upgrading of the level of political engagement” by the EU in Eastern Europe, including the prospect of a “new generation of Association Agreements”, “far-reaching integration into the EU economy”, and “easier travel to the EU for citizens” of partner countries. The partnership establishes five “flagship initiatives”: integrated border management; support for the development of small and medium businesses; promotion of regional electricity markets; development of the “southern energy corridor”; and “co-operation on preventing, preparing for and responding to natural and man-made disasters”.Stability and development. The President of the Commission points out that the Executive will organize a summit between the EU and the six countries in Eastern Europe involved (the invitation to Belarus remains, as explained above, provisional), probably to be held in April 2009. The initiative as a whole must now obtain the endorsement of the Council of heads of state and of government of the 27. Barroso declares: “Only with strong political will and commitment on both sides will the Eastern Partnership achieve its objective of political association and economic integration. We need to make an even greater investment in mutual stability and prosperity. This will be quickly compensated by important political and economic benefits and will lead to more stability and security for the EU and for our Eastern partners”. Benita Ferrero-Waldner adds: “The time is ripe to open a new chapter in relations with out Eastern neighbours”. “Building on the progress of the last years we have prepared an ambitious and at the same time well-balanced offer”. “Our policy towards these countries – she insists – should be strong, proactive and unequivocal”. Beyond the “cold war”. An initiative of this kind cannot but recall the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989 and the end of the “cold war”. Barroso explains: “Here areas of influence are not involved. They were a cornerstone of the cold war and of the post-war division of Europe. Today, by contrast, we believe the EU has a great power of attraction and that the ‘soft power’ it exercises is recognized in Europe and beyond. The countries we are addressing today have problems of stability, development and democracy. But what they have in common is their belief in the European Union as an example of democracy and peace. We have a precise responsibility in this sense”. And he continues: “Policy at the international level can only be pursued with dialogue and cooperation, not with missiles. Prosperity and stability can only be built with openness and dialogue, not with withdrawals and protectionism”. EU, Russia, Belarus. Barroso rejects “Fortress Europe”. But he doesn’t ignore the problem of relations with Russia: “With Moscow we have continuous relations; we hold two summits each year; we are bound together by common interests. I don’t think that Russia will interpret in a distorted manner this interest we are showing in Georgia, Ukraine and the other states. If I say this Partnership is positive for the whole of Europe, I say so because for us Russia is an integral part of Europe”. To Ferrero-Waldner was left the task of describing the individual measures planned by the Partnership, the steps to implement and the funds to be invested in them (350 million euros as “a supplementary envelope”, in addition to the planned resources for 2010-2013″ and the redeployment of 250 million from other programmes). Lastly, recurring to the question of Belarus, she insists: “this country still has a long way to go in its pursuit of democracy but we hope in this way to hold out a hand to the country and its population”.