Eu Crisis And Eastern Neighbourhood Response

The Eastern Neighbourhood is an important area for the European Union in terms of markets, investment location, energy supply, etc. The stabilization of the area by improving conditions for doing business in both economic and political terms is a primary interest of EU members and their business communities . There is important interdependence between the two areas in terms of trade and FDI but the development of regional integration in Europe and the former Soviet Union has been diverging. In the present situation the EU is strongly integrated internally but has only loose business integration with the countries to the East. Economic interest would demand deeper integration with the former Soviet countries or at least with some of them. But Russia is pulling those countries into another direction. The CIS have their own integration attempts like a limited free trade agreement (CISFTA). Some countries are further integrated in the Common Economic Space and have the broader aim of establishing a Eurasian Economic Union. Countries in the closer EU neighbourhood sit on the fence. The offer of the EU for them has been weak and hesitantly applied. Spreading the European regulatory practices, political institutions and civil liberties have not been very successful. In addition, the EU has not been able to prove its long-term attractiveness in terms of economic development and global competitiveness. The demonstration effect turned even negative in the recent economic crisis.