On Wednesday, leaders from the member states of the Eastern Partnership (EaP)—Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine—met a European Union (EU) delegation led by European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels for the sixth Eastern Partnership Summit.
This year’s Summit was themed “Recovery, Resilience and Reform,” and a joint declaration following the event said the two pillars of the leaders’ engagement was governance and investment. Regarding governance, the EaP and the bloc agreed to focus on creating accountable institutions, ensuring the rule of law, and strengthening security to foster robust democratic values. Meanwhile, concerning investment, the EU announced a $2.6 billion multi-country, multi-sector regional economic and investment plan for the EaP region as part of its post-2020 priorities. This figure could rise to $19.2 billion via further public and private investments. However, eligibility for the fund is contingent on EaP members’ successful implementation of the EU agenda.
The EU and the EaP leaders, barring Azerbaijan, also regretted Belarus’ decision to suspend its participation in the Partnership. EU leaders emphasised that they are open to working with Belarus in the future as long as its government provides “necessary conditions for peaceful democratic transition.” Until then, the bloc reassured its assistance to the Belarusian people, civil society, and independent media with $3.4 billion in economic support. Tensions between the EU and Belarus frayed even further last month, after the bloc accused Belarus of human trafficking and intentionally fuelling a migrant crisis at its shared border with Poland in retaliation to the bloc’s sanctions.
Meanwhile, in his speech, European Council President Michel said the Summit is a platform for the EU and the EaP members to reaffirm their commitment to making reforms in common areas such as digital strategy and climate policy. He also reasserted the Union’s support for Ukraine amid the growing threat of a Russian invasion and stressed that he would work with the G7 and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to ensure Ukraine’s security.
We reaffirm our support to Ukraine, its territorial integrity, and its sovereignty.
— Charles Michel (@eucopresident) December 15, 2021
Any military aggression against #Ukraine will be met with a strong answer, and those responsible for the aggressions will pay a high price.#EaPsummit #StrongerTogether pic.twitter.com/b1WSsiX8pn
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed Michel’s remarks and said that the European Council meeting on Thursday would provide more clarity.
Coordinated positions with @CharlesMichel before the 6th Eastern Partnership Summit. Our goal is 🇺🇦 full membership in 🇪🇺. Informed about the situation on the eastern borders. We expect clear signals following the @EUCouncil meeting on Dec 16 on the inadmissibility of escalation. pic.twitter.com/hlV6Q8CsY4
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 15, 2021
Previously, the United States and NATO have raised concerns over a full-blown military conflict between Russia and Ukraine, as Moscow has reportedly amassed an estimated 175,000 troops along the border in preparation for a possible invasion early next year.