{"id":73612,"date":"2022-07-06T06:00:55","date_gmt":"2022-07-05T20:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=73612"},"modified":"2022-07-05T18:56:35","modified_gmt":"2022-07-05T08:56:35","slug":"ukraines-case-for-eu-membership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/ukraines-case-for-eu-membership\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine\u2019s case for EU membership"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/figure>\n

In September 2002, I published a commentary<\/a> in The Wall Street Journal <\/em>entitled \u2018Kyiv has a case for the EU.\u2019 I was a first-term member of the European Parliament and, I believe, the first elected official anywhere to openly support Ukraine\u2019s inherent right to future European Union membership. Nearly 20 years later, the EU has at long last decided<\/a> to grant Ukraine candidate status. The move is both momentous and fully justified.<\/p>\n

For most of the intervening two decades, Ukraine\u2019s declared Euro-Atlantic aspirations had remained just that. As a European Parliament rapporteur for the 2004 European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) report and again as rapporteur for the Eastern Partnership Dimension in 2007, I had long battles to convince my German and French colleagues of the merits of Ukraine\u2019s EU case.<\/p>\n

To its credit, the European Parliament in 2007 settled for compromise wording<\/a> that was vague but hopeful. It did not reject Ukraine\u2019s right, under Article 49<\/a> of the Treaty on European Union, to join the bloc. But nor did it suggest, as had been the case since 2004 for the countries of the Western Balkans<\/a>, that Ukraine was entitled to the formal status of a \u2018candidate\u2019 or \u2018potential candidate\u2019 country.<\/p>\n

Importantly, Article 25 of the 2004 ENP report<\/a> clearly stated that EU membership for Ukraine remained \u2018possible\u2019, and this was restated in the next ENP report in 2007<\/a>. But the 2011 ENP report<\/a> did not mention any individual countries as potential candidates, so Ukraine\u2019s EU membership aspiration was not noted.<\/p>\n

The heady days of Ukraine\u2019s 2004 Orange Revolution and the Maidan Revolution a decade later culminated in the 2014 EU\u2013Ukraine Association Agreement<\/a>, which included a \u2018deep and comprehensive free trade area\u2019. But the agreement merely confirmed that the EU acknowledged Ukraine\u2019s European aspirations and welcomed its European choice, including its commitment to building a sustainable democracy and market economy.<\/p>\n

The pact made no mention of the country\u2019s Article 49 rights to EU membership, nor of the Copenhagen criteria<\/a> it would need to fulfil as a formal prerequisite for candidate status. These criteria stipulate that an EU candidate state must have democratic institutions and a functioning market economy, uphold fundamental human rights, and accept the obligations of membership.<\/p>\n

But EU enlargement is essentially a political decision by member states, based on a multitude of considerations that sometimes include dramatic events. Russia\u2019s war of aggression against Ukraine is such a turning point.<\/p>\n

The robustness of Ukraine\u2019s institutions and the strength of its civil society in the wake of Russia\u2019s invasion have generated a sense of awe in the West. The country\u2019s resilient government stood its ground as the invading barbarians massed at the gates of Kyiv. The country\u2019s railways<\/a> have continued to operate while under massive attack by a major military power. Then there is the courage<\/a> of Ukraine\u2019s armed forces and the sacrifices of civilians<\/a> targeted directly by Russian missiles. Russia\u2019s war crimes<\/a>, including the rape and murder of civilians in occupied territories, have shocked the West and spurred the change of mindset among EU members that made Ukraine\u2019s candidacy possible.<\/p>\n

With its large, highly educated population<\/a>, Ukraine could one day play a strategic role as a bridge between Western and Central Europe and Russia. After all, the EU allowed Turkey to become a negotiating candidate<\/a>, with all the geographical and cultural controversy the move provoked, on the grounds that Turkey was a bridge<\/a> between Europe and the Islamic world. Surely Ukraine has the same or perhaps an even greater right to a roadmap for its long-term goal of EU membership. Unfortunately, it has taken a brutal war for the EU finally to come to its senses and fully appreciate that its security interests are tied tightly to Ukraine\u2019s independence and European outlook.<\/p>\n

Once Russia\u2019s vicious attempt to re-establish an empire by force is finally defeated<\/a> and its forces are permanently driven from Ukraine, the country will need a vast reconstruction program<\/a> that mobilises financial aid to rebuild its war-ravaged infrastructure. But Ukraine\u2019s efforts to build a democracy from scratch\u2014particularly since Russia\u2019s illegal 2014 annexation of Crimea and the subsequent war started by its proxies in the eastern Donbas region\u2014deserve greater recognition. The association agreement and the free-trade deal have already brought about significant structural reforms, with Ukraine implementing as much as 60% of the acquis communautaire<\/em><\/a> (the body of EU law). This will give it a head-start when accession negotiations begin.<\/p>\n

EU candidate status will further encourage the reforms needed to strengthen the independence of the judiciary, bolster democracy and human rights, protect minorities, and combat corruption and cronyism, with the European Commission supervising the process and neighbouring EU countries providing the necessary expertise.<\/p>\n

Given Europe\u2019s looming demographic problems and the United Kingdom\u2019s regrettable departure from the EU, a pool of highly skilled Ukrainians will be a favourable addition to the European workforce. And, as the war has dramatically shown, Ukraine\u2019s EU accession will bring other benefits related to food security and defence capabilities.<\/p>\n

It will be many years before Ukraine becomes an EU member, but the country\u2019s candidate status is a strong morale boost in its existential war against Russia. The EU must now ensure that Ukraine eventually takes its place where it belongs\u2014in the European family.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In September 2002, I published a commentary in The Wall Street Journal entitled \u2018Kyiv has a case for the EU.\u2019 I was a first-term member of the European Parliament and, I believe, the first elected …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1575,"featured_media":73614,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[325,1025,163,714],"class_list":["post-73612","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-europe","tag-european-union","tag-russia","tag-ukraine"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nUkraine\u2019s case for EU membership | The Strategist<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/ukraines-case-for-eu-membership\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ukraine\u2019s case for EU membership | The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In September 2002, I published a commentary in The Wall Street Journal entitled \u2018Kyiv has a case for the EU.\u2019 I was a first-term member of the European Parliament and, I believe, the first elected ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/ukraines-case-for-eu-membership\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ASPI.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-07-05T20:00:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-07-05T08:56:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GettyImages-1239227124.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"683\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Charles Tannock\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ASPI_org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ASPI_org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Charles Tannock\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/\",\"name\":\"The Strategist\",\"description\":\"ASPI's analysis and commentary site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/ukraines-case-for-eu-membership\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GettyImages-1239227124.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GettyImages-1239227124.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":683,\"caption\":\"KYIV, UKRAINE - MARCH 16: (---EDITORIAL USE ONLY \u00e2 MANDATORY CREDIT - \\\"UKRAINIAN PRESIDENCY \/ HANDOUT\\\" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS----) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, Petr Fiala (not seen), Prime Minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki (not seen) and Prime Minister of Slovenia, Janez Jansa (not seen) during their visit in Kyiv on behalf of EU Council, on March 16, 2022. 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