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Ukraine Essay

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It was quite a shock when Ukraine was voted, along with Poland, a host country for Euro 2012 in 2007: could the championship really be held in this eastern European country, a former Soviet state, lacking a good infrastructure and an efficient administration? Nevertheless, the country started the preparations of the biggest sporting event it has yet organised. Only the future can tell us whether the transformation has been successful, but the assignment was not completely random, as Ukraine has been described as a “frontrunner” in Europeanisation, when compared to the oth-er countries in the Eastern Partnership. It is obvious that the proximity of the country to the EU plays an important role in this. The highly mobile population is …show more content…

For example, nearly 80% of all gas exports from Russia to Europe cross Ukraine. On numerous occasions, Russia has shut off energy supplies to Europe, which often pass by way of Ukraine. For the EU, the conflict showed that Ukraine is perhaps more strate-gically located than was thought before. The EU is also interested in stabilising the wider region which is plagued by many problems: the breakaway republic of Transnistria, the tension between Georgia and Russia, but also more di-rectly relevant issues such as organised crime, illegal migration and the environment.
b. The perspective of Ukraine
The political climate in Ukraine favours EU membership, having, since the country’s independence, included a theme of ‘returning to Europe’, which was further enhanced by the Orange Revolution. After a time of political turmoil from 2005 to 2010, Ukraine has been recognised by the EU as having entered a period of political stability. The political spectrum in Ukraine seems to be converging in their approach to Europe, with only the minor Communist Party being opposed to further integration.
Furthermore, Ukraine’s economic incentives are numerous. The EU is by far its largest trading partner, with approxi-mately 90% of imports and exports. The EU is also the largest foreign investor in the country, with 70%. While Ukraine’s economy was particularly hard-hit during the global financial crisis, requiring a $16.5 billion IMF loan, it gave a

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