Ukraine-EU: the next lap

During 2012 EU-Ukraine relations reached an all-time low, with Ukraine accused of democratic backsliding and selective justice. The European Union kept high-level political dialogue to a minimum, moving to increasingly isolate Ukraine’s leadership. This included postponing a visit of President Viktor Yanukovych to Brussels and a boycott of Euro 2012 by political leaders, and for the first time in years, no EU-Ukraine summit took place. This policy failed to deliver any tangible results. It was viewed in Kyiv as a ‘blame and shame’ policy, which further eroded trust as each side increasingly backed itself into a corner. Today the EU seems to have modified its approach and appears to be putting greater emphasis on dialogue – focusing on solutions rather than blame – while also increasing public diplomacy. The European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, Stefan Füle, visited Ukraine on 7-8 February, the European Parliament’s Monitoring Mission continues to be actively engaged on the ground, and an EU-Ukraine Summit is slated for 25 February at which all thorny issues will be discussed.

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