EU leaders gives €50 billion aid to Eastern Europe-Caucasus
Ararat News –Publishing (ANP), Fiona Lorin / Roni Alasor - 23/3/2009 / Brussels - Former Soviet countries, both EU Member states and non member countries, will get extra Community funding, according the decision of the European leaders taken on the EU Council in Brussels last week.
European leaders have agreed to make €50 billion available to eastern EU countries to restore jobs and economic growth after the financial crisis. According the International Monetary Fund Central and Eastern Europe had been especially hard hit by the economic downturn. Countries suffering the most include the Baltics, Hungary, Croatia, Romania, and Bulgaria, the IMF said.
Regarding Caucasus countries which are not members of EU, the European leaders envisage other forms of cooperation. They have decided to launch a project for the Eastern Partnership, aimed at strengthening relations of the EU-27 with Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldova and Belarus.
The Eastern Partnership is platform for cooperation and dialogue. There is no mention of a membership prospect, but visa-free travel and free trade are pointed out as important goals for the partners. A package of 600-million Euro will be allocated until 2013 to strengthen the democracy and the laws in these countries. Gas and oil pipeline network via those countries to EU is strategically important.
Analysts say that the new EU project aims to neutralize the Russian influence in the region. At the same time it is a way for Europe to try to bypass Russia and to open routes carrying oil and gas from other regions round the Black sea. Yesterday EU and Ukraine signed another cooperation agreement for modernization of Ukrainian pipeline network (for 2, 5 billion EUR) which provoked strong negative reactions in Moscow.
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