DISINFO: Eastern Partnership is an imitation of integration to alienate post-Soviet states and Russia
SUMMARY
The Eastern Partnership is an important project for both the European Union and the participating countries. However, while for post-Soviet states this is a step towards marriage, for Brussels it’s an opportunity to maintain the relationship without obligations. The EU lures these countries with a magical word – Euro Integration – and gives them false hopes for EU membership, while in return asking them to alienate Russia.
RESPONSE
A recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative on Eastern Partnership and the West, and in this case the EU, of separating Russia from its neighbours. The Eastern Partnership (EaP) is a joint policy initiative which aims to deepen and strengthen relations between the European Union (EU), its Member States and its six Eastern neighbours: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. Read more about the Eastern Partnership and its priorities here. The Eastern Partnership initiative is not against any country; it is a mutually beneficial and constructive platform for countries in the region to build a closer relationship with the EU if they choose to do so. The EU does not demand any of its partners to make a choice between the EU or any other country. The Eastern Partnership stands for good neighbourly relations and respects the individual aspirations and ambitions of each partner country. See similar disinformation cases that the aim of the Eastern Partnership is to separate Russia’s neighbours from it and Eastern Partnership and the Three Seas Initiative are anti-Russian. Read more on the most repeated myths about the Eastern Partnership initiative here.