A lot of bitter realism pills have been swallowed since then. As the president gears up for the annual EU-Ukraine summit in Brussels on Feb. 25, expectations have withered. Persecution of political opponents and lack of rule of law have caused lasting damage in relations with the West.
In Brussels the focus has been on retailoring the Eastern Partnership, a foreign policy program designed to anchor relations with former Soviet countries in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus, including Ukraine. Instead of spreading democracy, building institutions and, perhaps, providing membership perspectives, most of its six members seem to be sliding deeper into authoritarianism.
A recent unofficial paper from the foreign ministers of Germany, Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic focuses on more realistic goals for this partnership program: more visible EU-sponsored projects and an emphasis on free trade agreements, as well as a “more for more” model for individual countries implementing democratic reforms.
It did not have to be this way. As the linchpin of the intiative, Ukraine benefitted from much goodwill early on. Yet progress on the association agreement with the EU, which would have set an example and could’ve been a catalyst for change in the region, was torpedoed by democratic backsliding. Now, each little step towards the West is followed by renewed pressure at home on media or opposition figures.
At present EU leaders are urging Ukraine to sign the Association Agreement at a key summit in November – last chance to do it for a long time, according to some. But Ukraine is required to demonstrate some progress in certain marker issues.
Yet recent developments in the media sector (such as a sudden change of ownership at Inter TV channel, which in recent months started to become more balanced), new criminal cases rolled out against Yulia Tymoshenko, and calls by the Party of Regions for a new parliamentary election based on a new majority system, suggest old habits have not changed and there is no goodwill to do it.
Three years of Yanukovych’s presidency have been wasted. Two more are left to go — or more.
