The presidents of the European Council, Donald Tusk, and European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, and Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko will meet again on Monday 9 July for the 20th EU-Ukraine summit. No concrete announcement is expected from this summit.
The meeting – and the joint statement that will be adopted – will be the opportunity to review progress on the reform process in Ukraine, on EU-Ukraine cooperation, and on the situation in the east of the country and in Crimea.
This summit is the first since the entry into force of the association agreement (including the deep and comprehensive free trade agreement) and should enable a review to be made of the agreement's implementation and of the progress still to be made. The agreement is already having positive effects, with a 24% increase in trade in goods between the EU and Ukraine in 2017. The Ukrainians have also taken massive advantage of the visa liberalisation that entered into force a year ago. According to a senior European official, over 500,000 Ukrainians are said to have already taken advantage of this.
The leaders will also speak about the reform process in Ukraine. Although the country has moved forwards on many reforms, such as privatisation and decentralisation, it still needs to progress in the fight against corruption, a "crucial subject", according to a senior EU official. The Europeans are also concerned that the country is slowing down on the pace of its reforms and their implementation, with the approach of the 2019 electoral deadline.
Strengthening cooperation
The priorities for bilateral cooperation in 2018 will be at the centre of the debate. In addition to the traditional support to decentralisation, to reform of the public administration, to the fight against corruption, to the rule of law and to the socio-economic development of conflict-affected areas controlled by the government, new priorities are expected to be developed. These notably involve interpersonal contact and energy efficiency. Implementation of closer cooperation between the EU and Ukraine in the area of the common security and defence policy (CSDP), cybersecurity and strategic communication is also envisaged.
The memorandum of understanding on the new macrofinancial aid promised to Ukraine by the EU will not be the subject of a signature at the summit, the senior EU official announced. While the president of the European Parliament and the Austrian Presidency of the EU Council signed the decision, on 4 July, to attribute this assistance of over €1 billion to Ukraine, according to this official, the negotiations on the memorandum of understanding linked to this aid will only be held "in the coming weeks".
The illegal annexation of Crimea by Russia and the conflict in eastern Ukraine are also expected to be on the discussion table of the three presidents. As always, the EU will reaffirm its support for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. The two parties could review the (non) implementation of the Minsk agreements and insist on their full implementation.
Timetable coincidence or not, the six-month prolongation of the economic sanctions against Russia is expected to be published officially in the Official Journal on Monday 9 July (see EUROPE 12056). (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)