The honeymoon of Ukraine and the EU is over – analyst Leonid Litra
Ukraine has reached the greatest productivity in the bilateral relations at the end of 2017 with the European Union and the USA
The index of relations between Ukraine and the European Union in the period from July to October 2017 increased by 0.38 units. Interaction with the United States also improved by 0.22 points. Leading analysts, business and government officials commented on the current situation during the panel discussion on TRUMAN Index and TRUMAN Report.
"We have more topics for discussion with the US at the bilateral level. This has been facilitated by a number of visits and meetings," says Alyona Getmanchuk, director of New Europe Center and one of authors of TRUMAN Index. – This year we’ve had a unique situation in which the American direction was so much prioritized at all levels that it's hard to say who was the engine in this process. In fact, this year we had the "First America" policy. I probably do not remember that much attention to one foreign policy direction at all levels, since the elections of Donald Trump."
"The European Union remains the partner of Ukraine №1. But now we face the problems that are showing – the honeymoon is over. When it comes to delicate reforms sensitive to political elites, everything is much more complicated, and the tension in relations appear. The consequence of the tension is the lack of agreement between the parties. For example, the inability to reach agreement on a joint declaration at the Ukraine-EU summit. We saw similar signs at the Eastern Partnership summit," says senior analyst of New Europe Center, and one of authors in TRUMAN Index Leonid Litra. – There is a question of trust. How is Ukraine prepared to fulfill these promises? Today, we see inconsistency in the activities of the Ukrainian parliament on concrete examples. Parliament is the one most criticized by our partners."
For detailed analysis of Ukraine's external relations during the last quarter, read in TRUMAN Index.
