Democracy Promotion in the European Union’s Approach towards the Eastern Neighbours

Year 2018, Volume: 3 Issue: 3, 289 - 310, 30.12.2018

Fulya Akgül Durakçay , Asiye Gün Güneş Gülal

https://doi.org/10.30784/epfad.489242

Cited By: 1

Abstract

The European Union approaches
its Eastern neighbours that it became direct neighbours with the 2004
enlargement within the frameworks of the European Neighbourhood Policy and the
Eastern Partnership Initiative. The European Union by aiming approximation of
its neighbours with the Union norms, values and standards allocates a special
place to promoting democracy within the context of these policies. The aim of
this study is to identify the European Union’s emphasis on democracy promotion
in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, that it defines
as the Eastern neighbours and to identify the challenges to its normative power
in the Eastern neighbourhood. Within the scope of the European Union’s
democracy promotion in its relations with the Eastern neighbours, official
documents on the European Union’s institutional policies towards its Eastern
neighbours and the bilateral documents with the six countries participating at
the Eastern Partnership are used as primary sources; and the prominent publications
in the literature are used as secondary sources. It is inferred that the European
Union’s democracy promotion cannot be dissociated from its security approaches
and it addresses its Eastern neighbours within the security context. the
European Union’s interests especially for its secured access to energy sources
and Russia’s influence in the Eastern Partnership countries are determinant in
the European Union’s democracy promotion. However, this study argues that the
domestic contexts and the ambitions and wills of the third countries to realise
the political reforms are determining factors for the European Union’s
effectiveness or ineffectiveness in the region.

Keywords

European Union, European Neighbourhood Policy, Democracy Promotion

Avrupa Birliği’nin Doğu Komşularına Yönelik Yaklaşımında Demokrasi Teşviki

Abstract

Avrupa Birliği, 2004 genişlemesi ile doğrudan komşu
olduğu Doğu komşuları ile ilişkilerini Avrupa Komşuluk Politikası ve Doğu
Ortaklığı Girişimi kapsamında ele almaktadır. Komşularının Birlik norm, değer
ve standartları ile yakınlaşmalarını amaçlayan Avrupa Birliği; bu politikalar
kapsamında demokrasinin teşvik edilmesine özel bir yer ayırmaktadır. Bu
çalışmanın amacı, Avrupa Birliği’nin Doğu komşuları olarak tanımladığı
Azerbaycan, Belarus, Ermenistan, Gürcistan, Moldova ve Ukrayna ile
ilişkilerinde demokrasi teşvikine verdiği önem ile Doğu komşularında normatif
bir güç olmasının önündeki engelleri tespit etmektir. Avrupa Birliği’nin Doğu
komşuları ile ilişkilerinde demokrasi teşviki kapsamında, birincil kaynak
olarak Avrupa Birliği’nin kurumsal olarak geliştirdiği politikalar ili ilgili
belgeler, Doğu Ortaklığı Girişimi’nde yer alan altı ülke ile imzaladığı resmî
belgeler ve ikincil kaynak olarak literatürde öne çıkan çalışmalar
kullanılmaktadır. Avrupa Birliği’nin demokrasi teşvikinin güvenlik yaklaşımından
ayrı düşünülemeyeceği ve Doğu komşularına yönelik yaklaşımlarını güvenlik
bağlamında ele aldığı görülmektedir. Avrupa Birliği’nin demokrasi teşvikinde
Avrupa Birliği’nin özellikle enerji kaynaklarına güvenli ulaşımı çerçevesindeki
çıkarları ve Rusya’nın Doğu Ortaklığı ülkelerinde sahip olduğu nüfuz
belirleyici bir rol oynamaktadır. Ancak, çalışmada Avrupa Birliği’nin bölgedeki
etkisini ya da etkisizliğini açıklamada üçüncü ülkelerin iç bağlamları ile
siyasi reformları gerçekleştirme istek ve iradelerinin belirleyici unsur olduğu
savunulmaktadır.

Keywords

Avrupa Birliği, Avrupa Komşuluk Politikası, Demokrasi Teşviki

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