First EaP CSF Civil Society Summit

Plenary room.
Over the last years, the Eastern Partnership (EaP) has confirmed its multi-speed trend. Opening accession negotiations with Moldova and Ukraine accelerated the internal reform agenda of both countries. The Georgian government’s crackdown on civil society threatened the country’s EU path, while Armenian authorities are more actively articulating the country’s EU integration aspiration. At the same time, the new EU Institutions resulted from first European elections since Russia’s full-scale invasion may lead to an updated EaP agenda. Ahead of the Eastern Partnership Summit, will the EU Institutions accelerate the EaP policy while working at different speeds within the EaP policy?  

Enjoy provided coffee, tea and refreshments.

Plenary room.
The rule of law, human rights, functioning of democratic institutions, reform of public administration, economic criteria, among others, are the core of the ‘fundamentals’ of the EU accession process. Its progress determines the overall pace of accession negotiations for the countries on the EU accession path. Nevertheless, supporting the ‘fundamentals’ remains a priority in all EaP countries. How will the EU continue to uphold its fundamental values with both EaP countries on the enlargement path and those that do not currently seek strong EU integration? How can civil society and democratic forces contribute to bolstering the rule of law reforms towards a democratic transformation in all EaP countries? What support do they need to do so? How can the experience of Western Balkans be used in the EaP context?  

Enjoy the lunch provided at the venue.

Plenary room.

The South Caucasus is navigating geopolitical challenges between European aspirations and shrinking of civic space. The survival of democratic actors is at risk in Azerbaijan ten years after the crackdown on civil society and on independent media. Furthermore, the decision of the European Council to grant Georgia candidate status inspired many in Armenia, who looked at Georgia’s Europeanisation with hope. Nevertheless, smear campaigns targeting civil society by the Georgian government raised questions regarding the maturity of the Georgian democracy and jeopardised the country’s EU path. For their part, the Armenian authorities are actively putting efforts to bring the country closer to the EU. The recently launched negotiations for a new EU-Armenia Partnership Agenda go in that direction and will establish more ambitious joint priorities. 

How do developments in Georgia affect the South Caucasus region and its democratic aspiration? How can the Eastern Partnership support Armenia’s European aspirations while stimulating democratic changes in the whole region? 

Enjoy provided coffee, tea and refreshments.

All sessions are discussed under Chatham House rule.

Session 1 – Room 1
Is the EaP armed against cyber-attacks? Defence and security in the age of hybrid threats 
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine led to an increasingly challenging security environment in the EaP region. The EU intensified dialogue on security and defence topics to better address shared challenges and strengthen EaP countries’ resilience. This encompasses a broader range of areas of cooperation, including countering hybrid threats and cyber issues. In July 2024, for the first time, the EU decided to support Armenia from the European Peace Facility. Moreover, the May 2024 Security and Defence Partnership signed between the EU and Moldova goes in the direction of strengthening cyber resilience, including through cyber capacity building and rapid response assistance. Could it serve as an inspiration for other EaP countries? How can such bilateral agreements contribute to the overall security of the EaP?   

Session 2 – Room 2
Beyond pipelines and freight trains: Boosting connectivity in the EaP region 
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has been a catalyst for enhanced trade, transport, and energy connectivity between the EU and several EaP countries. Notably, energy interdependence grew between the EU, the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. Consequently, Ukraine and Moldova strengthened their energy security resilience. Furthermore, connectivity via the revitalisation of trainlines for freight between Moldova and Ukraine and onwards to the EU, as well as the development of the East-West middle corridor’s sea and land routes, have positively impacted the mutual improvement of EaP and EU trade and transport resilience. How can post-2025 EaP policy further enhance EaP countries’ dialogue? How can stronger regional cooperation contribute to strengthen resilience of the EaP countries?  

Session 3 – Room 3
Blowing the whistle: how civil society brings authorities’ wrongdoings to light.
Civil society’s role is fundamental to contribute to the checks and balances underpinning anti-corruption mechanisms. In several EaP countries, independent journalists and civil society representatives investigating high-level corruption have been arrested or are under investigation for having reported abuse of power, active and passive bribery, and other corruption offences. How can civil society keep holding authorities accountable and report on such cases, especially in times of democracy deficiencies while remaining safe?  

Session 4 – Room 4
“But I saw this on social media”: How civil society counters propaganda and disinformation
2024 has been an election year for several EaP countries. Election campaigns were marked by attempts to destabilise free and fair election process, with disinformation and campaigns discrediting the EU being spread via diverse channels, including online. This led to an increasing polarisation of the society ahead of key elections in the EaP countries. While civil society therein spoke out about these attempts, they did not operate in a secure and enabling environment. How can EU institutions, governments and civil society work more effectively together to fight propaganda and disinformation safely and effectively? What counter narratives could be developed to counter anti-Western and anti-EU rhetoric?  

Session 5 – Room 5
Energy at any cost: The challenges of new energy corridors in the EU and EaP region
Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, facilitating energy connectivity became a part of the EU’s response to mitigate the effects of the war of aggression, which triggered concern over the EU’s energy security. Azerbaijan will double its gas exports to Europe by 2027, making it a major contributor to Europe’s energy security. Civil society raised serious questions concerning the upholding of EU democratic values and human rights within such partnerships. Notably, despite the recently signed EU-Azerbaijan strategic energy partnership, Baku has shown consistent dealignment with such values, holding political prisoners, human rights defenders, and journalists unjustly behind bars. In light of Baku’s UN Climate Change Conference Cop29, what are the upcoming challenges and risks to the EaP energy security? How can energy cooperation be enhanced while ensuring environmental values and human rights are being upheld?   

Enjoy provided coffee, tea and refreshments.

All sessions are discussed under Chatham House rule.

Session 1 – Room 1
The EU enlargement policy: an opportunity for the EaP region .
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine led the European Union to fast-track accession talks with the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. Last year’s decision of the European Council to open accession negotiations with the two countries marked a landmark moment for their citizens. At the same time, it led the two countries to accelerate their internal reform agenda. Negotiations on specific chapters are taking place within the framework of the Intergovernmental Conference. At what stage of the negotiations are Moldova and Ukraine in the road to the EU integration?  

Session 2 – Room 2
Can we bridge the gender gap? One year of dedicated work on gender equality in the EaP region 

Over the past decade, Eastern Partnership countries have made progress in various aspects of gender equality.  Including  the development and approval of legislative frameworks for gender equality, and action plans for reducing inequality in all the six countries. However, while most partner countries have limited tools and capacities to implement key commitments, others lack the political will to do so. Furthermore, gender mainstreaming in sectoral policies remains suboptimal across the EaP region, which is evident in most of the national and regional policies. 

In order to better achieve the Eastern Partnership priority aims for gender equality and enhance the implementation of gender equality across all five long-term priorities, a Working Group for Gender Equality was created in 2023 in the frame of Eastern Partnership. 

Panellists will share their experience into the policy-oriented debates on gender-based violence and the Istanbul Convention, the gender pay and pension gap, as well as the care economy and gender inequality. Panellists will then set priorities for gender-oriented policies in the EaP countries.  

Session 3 – Room 3
How to keep authorities accountable amidst crackdowns  
Within the EaP region, the enabling environment for civil society has particularly shrunk in three countries. Examples of weaponised legislation have hampered the ability of civil society to exercise its functions and, in some cases, affected their financial sustainability or led to their de-registrations, their leaders’ imprisonment and ultimately, their annihilation. As agent of change able to keep authorities accountable, civil society needs an enabling environment to operate in, supported by authorities ready to engage in a constructive dialogue.

Enjoy provided coffee, tea and refreshments.

During this session, participants will reflect on the main takeaways from the EaP CSF Civil Society Summit 2024.