Kiev – European think-tanks' meeting for a sustainable democratic Ukraine

Presentation of project 2015 Europe without political Prisoners to European think tankers in Kiev

ESI's Gerald Knaus was invited to participate in a three days meeting of European think tanks in Kiev to discuss policy recommendations following the recent crisis in Ukraine.

From the very beginning, Ukraine's crisis went beyond its borders and became an issue of high concern on the agendas of the EU, US and other states. Despite the calls and efforts of the international community to avoid violence, Ukraine did not manage to keep the protests peaceful. As the new power took office in Kyiv, a second wave of the crisis was already underway, this time with implications for Ukraine's territorial integrity. As a result of the Russian intervention in Ukraine, Crimea was annexed, in violation of international norms.

The issue of Crimea and other potential internal upheavals are not a problem of Ukraine alone: the implications of the crisis will have consequences for all the actors in the region. Hence, we Europeans are concerned.

This hazardous situation – unprecedented since the end of the Cold War – requires systemic and collective thinking on how to minimize the impact of the crisis and how to contribute to the creation of a sustainable and democratic Ukraine. In order to offer some guidelines in the ongoing debate on Ukraine and foster better connection of the European think-tanks with the discussion, a meeting of representatives from major think-tanks across Europe – EU and non EU countries – as well as Russian scholars and experts, will be organized in Kyiv.

Participating think tanks

1. Center for Liberal Strategies (CLS), Sofia
2. Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), Brussels
3. Chatham House, London
4. CIDOB, Barcelona Centre for International Affairs, Barcelona
5. EU Institute for Security Studies (EUISS), Paris
6. European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), UK and other places
7. European Stability Initiative (ESI), Berlin, Istanbul, Brussels, Vienna
8. Hungarian Institute of International Affairs (HIIA), Budapest
9. Ifri (Institut français des relations internationales), Paris
10. Institute for Development and Social Initiatives (IDIS Viitorul), Chisinau
11. Istituto per gli Studi di Politica Internazionale (ISPI), Milan
12. Polish Institute of International Affairs (PISM), Warsaw
13. Romanian Center for European Policies (CRPE), Bucharest
14. Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Stockholm
15. Centre for EU-Russia Studies (CEURUS), University of Tartu, Andrey Makarychev
16. German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), Berlin

• Rumeli Observer: Lydia's vision – Czernowitz, Ukraine, 1994-2014 (in German) (7 April 2014)
• Newsletter: Why they look West – Ukraine, poverty and the EU (21 March 2014)
• Rumeli Observer: Why they look West – Ukraine, poverty and the EU (20 March 2014)
• Rumeli Observer: Kiev and the cost of EU enlargement on hold (21 February 2014)
• ESI presentation at public round table discussion on visa-free Europe (28 January 2013)
• Public screening of ESI Moldova documentary: Moldova lost in Transition (25 January 2013)
• ESI think tank capacity building seminar in Ukraine (24 January 2013)

Presentation by Gerald Knaus of project 2015 Europe without political Prisoners to European think tankers in Kiev

The head of Ukraine's national Security Council – Andriy Parubiya – explaining the situation in Ukraine

Ukrainian economy minister Pavlo Sheremeta