The Prospects of the European Union Mediation and Peacekeeping in the Eastern Partnership
The Prospects of the European Union Mediation and Peacekeeping in the Eastern Partnership

Summary/Abstract: While many of the European Union (EU) member states have been actively involved in conflict resolution around the world as single states, the EU itself does not have a sufficient experience in this sphere, among others due to the concentration on confidence-building as the main instrument of involvement and also due to the absence of a consensus in foreign and security policy, especially in the conflict settlement sphere. The situation started changing in 2008, because of the Russian-Georgian conflict, whereas the Ukrainian crisis of 2014 brought a serious challenge for the EU. Against this backdrop, this article seeks to answer the following questions: Is the EU a reliable part-ner in peacekeeping and mediation activities in the European conflicts and what are its strengths and weaknesses? This paper argues that despite years of involvement, it is still difficult to name the Eu-ropean Union a reliable mediator and a possible peacekeeper in the Eastern Partnership region. The article also insists against calling the EU a mediator in the Ukrainian crisis, since its involvement in peacekeeping is low.

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