Eastern Partnership does not guarantee EU membership

UK Foreign Minister David Miliband has stated that the Eastern Partnership initiative cannot be considered a step towards EU membership. He said that the programme should initially be an instrument for the stabilisation of the participant countries, their integration into European markets, the introduction of economic reforms there and their cooperation in the energy sphere.

The Eastern Partnership was initiated in May 2008 by the Polish Foreign Ministry with Swedish support. The programme envisages strengthening relations between the EU together and six post Soviet countries, Belarus, Ukraine, Armenia, Moldova, Azerbaijan and Georgia. It envisages the further integration of those countries into the EU economy and the simplification of the visa regime.