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EUROPEAN UNION

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EASTERN PARTNERSHIP SUMMIT

(Warsaw, 29/30 September 2011)

The second Eastern Partnership summit will aim to strengthen the commitment to the EU's ambitious partnership with countries in Eastern Europe and the Southern Caucasus. It will bring together heads of state from the EU and its member states with those of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. The summit will take place on 29/30 September in Warsaw, hosted by Poland.

President Van ROMPUY will chair the meeting and together with the President of the European Commission, José Manuel B ARROSO will represent the EU. Catherine Ashton i, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Stefan Fiile, Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy and President of the European Parliament Jerzy Buzek i will also attend. EU member states will be represented by their heads of state of government.

The six partner countries will be represented by the Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, President Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich, Moldovan Prime Minister Vladimir Filat and the Ambassador of Belarus in Poland.

The summit will review progress concerning key themes of the partnership: respect for democracy and human rights, closer political association, economic integration and mobility for citizens. It is also expected to kick off increased cooperation in agriculture, energy and transport policies. A joint declaration will be adopted.

Eastern Partnership

The EU's Eastern Partnership was launched at the Prague Eastern Partnership summit in May 2009 where a joint declaration was adopted. It concerns six partner countries in Eastern Europe and the Southern Caucasus: the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. Through this initiative, the EU supports reforms in the partner countries that are aimed at consolidating democracy, the rule of law, the respect for human rights and an open market economy. At the same time, it offers gradual integration into the European economy, greater mobility for citizens and closer political ties. Over the period 2010-13, approximately €1.9 billion is allocated in the frame of bilateral and regional ENPI programmes to support the implementation of the EaP.

Closer economic ties

The Eastern Partnership provides for Association Agreements with each of the participating states, which are to replace the existing Partnership and Cooperation Agreements. Negotiations for them have been launched in January 2010 with Moldova and in July 2010 with Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. The new accords are to include deep and comprehensive free trade agreements. The EU has been negotiating with Ukraine since March 2007 for an Association Agreement and since February 2008 on a deep and comprehensive free trade agreement. These talks are now in a very advance stage and their conclusion will be debated at the summit. It is envisaged that negotiations on free trade agreements could also start with Georgia and Moldova in the near future, depending on whether necessary reforms have been carried out. Since Azerbaijan is not a member of the WTO, a free trade area with that country cannot be envisaged at the moment.

The negotiations for closer economic integration are complemented by a programme of institution building for partner countries to enable them to implement the agreements. This is meant to improve the administrative capacity of partner countries and their compatibility with EU institutions, for instance through twinning programmes, professional training and secondment of personnel. A budget of EUR 175 million is available for this purpose.

Moreover, a total of EUR 75 million is reserved for pilot regional development programmes in partner states. Modelled on the EU cohesion policy, they are aimed at addressing economic and social imbalances through the development of local infrastructure, human resources and small- and medium-sized companies.

Increased mobility

Greater mobility of citizens is a core objective of the Eastern Partnership and will be discussed by heads of state at the summit. Agreements on visa facilitation and readmission were signed with Georgia in June 2010 and with the Ukraine in June 2007. Negotiations for such agreements with Armenia and Azerbaijan are expected to be launched in the near future. Visa-free regimes are a second step, provided that conditions for secure mobility are in place. Both the Ukraine and Moldova are currently conducting a dialogue on visa-free travel with the EU.

Regional cooperation

To support cooperation on common challenges faced by the partner countries and good neighbourly relations, the Eastern Partnership also contains a multilateral track. Four multilateral policy platforms have been established, concerning democracy, good governance and stability; economic integration and convergence with EU policies; energy security, and contacts between people. The EU supports the multilateral dimension of the Eastern Partnership with a budget of EUR 350 million over the period of 2010-13. Of these, around EUR 160 million will be spent on several Eastern Partnership flagship initiatives:

■ Integrated border management flagship initiative

■ Support to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Flagship Initiative

■ Regional energy markets, energy efficiency and Renewable Energy Sources flagship initiative

■ Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and man-made Disasters Flagship Initiative

■ Diversification of energy supply

■ Environmental Governance Flagship Initiative

Meetings of Heads of State and government within the Eastern Partnership are scheduled every two years whereas foreign ministers meet every year. On 15 September 2011, the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly, bringing together members of the European Parliament with elected representatives from the six partner countries, held its inaugural session in Strasbourg. A Civil Society Forum has also been established for representatives from the civil society of countries participating in the Eastern Partnership initiative and the EU. Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of the EaP have been established to complement the intergovernmental strand.

EU relations with Belarus

The reaction of the Belarusian authorities against the protests of 19 December 2010 and continuing repressive actions against the representatives of Belarusian civil society are at the root of the low profile of relations between the EU and Belarus. This also explains the limited involvement of Belarus in the bilateral track of the Eastern Partnership. The EU has consistently offered to deepen its relations with Belarus, but such deepening is conditional on progress towards respect for democracy, the rule of law and human rights.