EU Set to Formulate Future Relations with Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova :: Charter'97 :: News

In the spotlight of attention of the informal two-day meeting of the Cabinet of EU Foreign Ministers, due to open on Friday in Elsinor (Denmark) will be the Union’s expansion and “new initiative on friendly relations between the neighbors”, that is with Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova. This was mentioned by the permanent EU representative from Denmark, which is the EU president this year, Paul Skitt Kristoffersen.

Such informal meetings of Foreign Ministers traditionally open the political season of every other EU chairmanship’s mandate. The high officials don’t pass any official decisions but simply exchange opinions and hold collective brain-storming on the most poignant foreign policy problems, faced by EU.

The Council will first of all be dedicated to the EU enlargement. According to Kristoffersen, they plan to dedicate debates on the issue to the successful finish of negotiations with the candidate-countries before the Copenhagen EU summit in December. For this they need to regulate the unsolved problems, such as the financial ones, before the start of the Brussels summit on October 24-35.

The second issue on their agenda will be the relations with the new EU members “from Morocco to Vladivostok”, said the official. They will mostly concentrate on the EU relations with Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova.

Kristoffersen doesn’t rule out the possibility that the Ministers will also discuss the Kaliningrad’s problem in light of the preparation to the upcoming November EU-Russia summit in Copenhagen.

The ambassador noted that it “inadmissible that the EU establishes a system, which would violate the Shengen principles”. At the same time he emphasized that the EU is open for any debates that would “bring about mutually acceptable decisions”.

Among other items on their agenda will be rendering aide to the countries, which suffered from flooding.

The Minister will also share opinions on the situation in the Middle East. In connection with the plans of building within 3 years of an independent Palestinian state, the head of the Foreign Ministers intend to discuss the list of measures, which must be accomplished on the way to the goal.