Publication

By the director of the IWP Alyona Getmanchuk for “Kyiv Post”The summit in Vilnius on Nov. 28-29, was, indeed, crucial for Ukraine. The non-signing of the association agreement already on the first days after the summit demonstrated how close to the abyss of dictatorship Ukraine will get if its leaders have no commitments to the European Union.

Of course, now the No. 1 challenge for all of us is to protect not the European choice, but the people who defended this choice and against whom legal proceedings have already started or may start.

However, it is equally important to retain the European leverage on the Ukrainian leadership. I know that many European politicians and diplomats interpreted the hypocritical game of revision of the already initialled association agreement, which now the Ukrainian side is trying to start with the EU, as another slap in the face. However, if the Ukrainian side with all their proposals for new consultations is shown the door, European integration may officially become the No. 1 enemy of the ruling regime. And everyone who supports Ukraine’s European choice and promotes it will be perceived as the main threat which has to be neutralized immediately.

It is necessary to hold Ukrainian authorities at least on a tiny European leash, but not in order to make friends with them again. This is to ensure that the European idea keeps open at least a tiny window to reach those Ukrainians which are not ready yet to defend this idea neither among their friends nor in social networks, nor, especially, at street protests. It has much less chances of winning if it is perceived being the main enemy of the regime rather than being authorized, at least on the official rhetorical level.

How can relations between Ukraine and the EU stay in good shape until the president of Ukraine (probably a new one) will be ready to sign the association agreement and make every effort to implement it?

There are solutions, and they are not secret. We must promptly strive for a visa-free regime with the EU because a direct relation between the number of visits to the EU and the level of support for Ukraine’s membership in the European Union has been proven by many sociological campaigns. It is necessary to develop a maximum number of partnerships between Ukraine and EU member states at the level of universities, local communities, NGOs and movements. Many of them already exist, but a serious audit is needed.

It is necessary to motivate Ukrainian students to participate in student exchange programs and study in the EU, because the lack of motivation is the main reason today for only 3 percent of Ukrainians having visited Schengen Area countries for the educational purposes.

When I was travelling with colleagues during a campaign for the EU in the regions of Ukraine, parents, not students, were mainly interested in education in the EU “for the child to go somewhere to study.” The EU could also consider introducing scholarships for Ukrainian students, similar to the Open Europe Scholarship Scheme (OESS) which has been established for young Belarusians.

It is necessary to maximize the amount of press tours and internship programs for Ukrainian journalists (especially regional ones) to EU member states. We need to create a network for communication of young professionals, who work in government, regional and district administrations, with their counterparts in the EU. From my own experience, I would say that socialization may be the most effective means for Europeanization.

A regional information campaign, which explains that the European choice is not just high politics, but daily things: the ability to defend their rights in court, clean air and water that can be drunk with no fear, decent infrastructure, the absence of need to give bribes at every turn, in no case should be stopped. That is why such things like the EU’s campaign “Stronger Together” have to continue, involving as many speakers from the EU as possible (in addition to ambassadors, active European members of parliament, well-known retired politicians, journalists from leading media). The emphasis, of course, is to be made on those regions where EuroMaidans have collected fewer supporters.

Another question is who will do this and how should it be done? After Vilnius it is clear that civil society is the key engine of European ideas in Ukraine. Despite the fact that it is much stronger in Ukraine than in some other countries of the region, it is still not established and needs constant motivation and support. In particular, the support of European partners, since there have been many projects related to the European integration supported by U.S. funds. Obviously, today all NGOs and think-tanks, regardless of their profile, are to create a strong European coalition. And when planning their activities for the next few years they must answer the only question: “What can you do for the country’s European integration?”

Due to the increasingly conscious European choice, today is a moment when we either substantially strengthen civil society with caring and critically thinking citizens or marginalize it significantly, as it happened in Belarus in its time. In particular, by failing to dot the i’s in collaboration with the political opposition. There is nothing wrong with the civil society acting as a constructive opposition, but there is nothing good with the political opposition having a more constructive appearance against the backdrop of the civil society.

The European Union, if it so wished, today could help civil society in Ukraine to become not only more visible, but also a more systematic and influential player. To do so, on the one hand, it has to push for civil society to be involved in government decision-making and provide the government with funds only for those projects that are implemented in cooperation with civil society. On the other hand, the EU should focus on supporting those organizations which are able to build relationships and inspire the European idea of ordinary people more than their international partners or donors.

Only a strong civil society can today perform a critical role in the liberalization of the visa regime by applying constant public pressure on parliament for it adopt necessary legislation and by also pointing to Moldova’s success in obtaining visa-free travel to the EU next year. And it could be involved in the process concerning the signing and implementation of the “Open Skies” agreement, which can enhance the mobility of Ukrainian citizens due to low airfare prices. And, it could also simply describe the opportunities of the new EU program “Erasmus plus.”

If we roll up our sleeves next year, we can form a critical mass of those for whom the “European choice” is a perceived need, rather than a political slogan. Accordingly, in 2015 we will have a situation where a person who is not able to implement the European course cannot become the president. Or, at least, is not able to sign the association agreement.

Ukraine has repeatedly tried to pursue European integration without Europeanization. Today we are forced to exercise Europeanization without European integration, to restart the European integration one day. But this time, with a Europeanized society.