The EU and Ukraine

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses how the EU constitutes an important international actor, exercising both passive and active leverage force on its neighbours who aspire to join the Union. The paper illustrates the difficulties Ukraine faces in acquiring full EU membership. The paper, however, describes the positive change in European rhetoric towards Ukraine in recent years as well as Ukraine's intensification of cooperation at top political levels. The paper maintains that the past track of EU-Ukraine interaction should be left behind, as Ukraine now embarks on a series of new domestic reforms under the guidance of European values.

Outline:
Abstract
Introduction
Common Norms, Values, Political and Socio-economic Standards
The History of Interaction
Recent Developments
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"The existence of borders is rarely unchallenged - by the end of 1990s there appeared new lines of division on the continent between an almost united Europe and the rest. After the European Union (EU) enlargement in May 2004, Europe's political boundaries still do not coincide with its geographic ones and Ukraine is very active in attempting to regain its rightful place in Europe. According to Avery, 'the term ''Europe'' has not been officially defined. It combines geographical, historical and cultural elements, all of them constitutive of the European identity. The common experience of proximity, values and historical interaction cannot be gathered in a simple formula and should be revised by each new generation. Therefore, the Commission estimates that establishing the frontiers of the European Union, whose limits will be redefined in the next years, is neither possible nor opportune' (Avery, 1992, p. 11)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Avery, G. (1992) Europe and the challenge of enlargement, Bulletin of the European Communities,Supplement 3/92, p. 11.
• BBC (2002) Ukrainian President Loses Majority. Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/2334047.stm (accessed 16 October 2002).
• Bjorkdahl, A. (2002a) From Idea to Norm, Promoting Conflict Prevention (Lund: Lund University).
• Bjorkdahl, A. (2002b) Norms in international relations: Some theoretical and methodological reflections,
• Cambridge Review of International Affairs, 15(1), pp. 9 - 23.

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