Government approves agreements EU and ukraine, Moldavia and Georgia
On 3 April 2015 the Government of Flanders transmitted three draft decrees to the Flemish Parliament concerning the association agreements between the European Union and Ukraine, Moldavia and Georgia. The association agreements constitute a central element of the Eastern Partnership of the European Union that seeks to establish an extended free trade zone between the EU and these countries.
The Eastern Partnership started off in 2003. It is an ambitious political project that – step by step – aims at extending the traditional trade and cooperation relations with the eastern neighbours of the Union into a broader partnership. On the economic level the partnership offers a privileged relation, easy access to the European internal market, a strong connectivity for energy, transport and telecommunications, and the possibility to participate certain EU programmes. Also financial and technical support will be offered. The EU aims at forging ties which go beyond the traditional bilateral cooperation agreements. The main goals are gradual economic integration and an extended political cooperation.
On 21 May 2015 an Eastern Partnership Summit will be held in Riga, Lithuania. The approval by the Flemish Parliament in the course of the next weeks is a necessary step for the ratification of the association agreements by the federal state of Belgium, hopefully at the summit in Riga.
Read more about the Eastern Partnership.