August 3, 2021

The 17th Batumi International Conference of the EU and the three students of exclellence in the Eastern Partnership - Ukraine, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova, represents a change of the EU policy. From now on the three countries' ties to the EU will be promoted, while the EU relations with the other three countries - Belarus, Armenia and Azerbaijan, most likely not advance significantly.
In the second episode of the Cross-Border Talks Malgorzata Kulbaczewska-Figat makes a thorough analysis on the geopolitical perspectives of the three Eastern Partnership students of excellence. The USA views strategically its relationship with them, because of security and military issues. Russia has the trump card of frozen conflicts, which as seen in Nagorno Karabakh can get reactivated unexpectedly. But while Russia opposes the advancement of NATO in the region, it is also less opposed to the EU's strategy towards the three countries.
At the Batumi International Conference EU Council's president Charles Michael announced that the EU will support the three countries in fighting the negative outcome of the pandemic with public and private investment, which could reach 17 billion euro. The second pillar of EU's strategy to the region is the transport interconnectvity. The third, final pillar, is the most vague one - the issue of reform, of rule of law and respect of procedures.
Malgorzata Kulbaczewska reminded that the people of the three countries are generally lacking perspectives and see the opening to the EU as a solution of the economic problems through emigration. But the future of the region remains bleak. Vladimir Mitev reminded that the EU generally has appeal to the middle classes all over its neighbourhood, but it needs to be studied what it can offer to the underprivileged layers of society.
In any case the 17th Batumi International Conference could be seen as a sign that the EU remains engaged in its Eastern Neighbourhood - but it admits certain failure with one group of countries, and prefers to focus on the other group, that is more open to Europeanisation.

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