European Integration constitutes an extremely important field of work of Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation Ukraine. Within the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) of Eastern Partnership Ukraine is a partner of great priority for the European Union (EU). An ongoing increase of the EU - Ukraine relationship is one of the declared aims of the Ukrainian government as well as the EU to reach the “closest possible political association and economic integration”.
The association agreement between Ukraine and EU, which came into force on January 1st 2016, is one of the most ambitious and extensive bilateral agreements, which the EU negotiated with a third country. One of the integral components of the association agreement is the so called “deep and comprehensive free- trade agreement”. Due to the elimination of custom duties this free-trade agreement will strengthen the bilateral trade volume and with the assumption of the EU product standards and norms the economic modernization of Ukraine will be expedited. With over one third of the trade volume the EU is the most important trade partner of Ukraine.
Although the EU-Associating process offers great chances and opportunities for Ukraine, the implementation of the association agreement is a long-term and demanding task. Until 2025 Ukraine has to adopt and implement 426 legal provisions of the EU to execute the agreement. However the agreement does not only concern the regulatory assimilation and market liberalization, but also a fundamental, social change and European values for which the Ukrainians fought for with the “Revolution of dignity” 2013/14 on the Maidan Square in Kiev. More than half of the population support efforts to move closer to the European Union. In this respect accompany of the approximation process with expertise, support and profound information for the population about the chances and opportunities of the EU-association is of particular significance.
Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation has committed themselves to the European orientation of Ukraine and supports the approximation process with the EU through several seminars and conferences regarding this topic. Therefor Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation works together as partner with the Institute for Euro Atlantic Cooperation, the Ukrainian Institute for International Politics and the European Youth Parliament Ukraine and the Institute for European Politics. The following events and publications are examples of how the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation accompanies the EU-association process.
- The 6th Euro-Atlantic Forum: Transatlantic Relations and Ukraine’s role 20 years after the “New Transatlantic Agenda“, 2016
- Seminar series"Eastern Partnership Leaders for Change" for supporting a new generation of reform-oriented leaders in the modernization of the Eastern Partnership countries
- Ukraine and the Association Agreement. Implementation monitoring July 1 — November 1 2016
- Navigator des Assoziierungsabkommens (2017)
- Ukraine and the Association Agreement. Implementation monitoring December 1, 2016 — November 1, 2017
- European Camp Winter 2018
- The 7th Euro-Atlantic Forum. An Agenda for Solidarity in Times of Transatlantic Insecurity (2018).
