The EU’s Eastern Partnership in Action: A Conversation with Štefan Füle

On November 29, the Center on the United States and Europe hosted Štefan Füle, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy, for a private roundtable discussion on the Eastern Partnership program one year after its implementation.

Recognizing the European Union’s vital interest in maintaining stability, good governance and open markets on its Eastern borders, in 2008 Poland and Sweden presented a proposal for the creation of an enhanced cooperation framework between the EU and six countries in Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus – Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. The “Eastern Partnership” is a platform aimed at strengthening the EU’s political and economic ties to these Post-Soviet states by promoting democracy, energy security, stability and prosperity in the region.

Since its launch in May 2009, the Eastern Partnership has scored some success in amplifying relationships with Europe’s eastern flank, but it has also experienced some disappointments, especially in Ukraine and Belarus. To assess the realization of the Eastern Partnership, the prospects for its Eastern members, but also the challenges that it will encounter, on November 29 the Center on the United States and Europe (CUSE) at Brookings and the Heinrich Boell Foundation (HBF) hosted a roundtable private discussion with Štefan Füle, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy.  The event was part of the continuing Brookings-HBF series on the future of the European Union. Justin Vaisse, Senior Fellow and Director of Research at CUSE, provided introductory remarks and moderated the discussion.