Kyiv media were asked not to even dream of associate membership - USAID manual
Ukrainian journalists were openly pointed out that the entry into force of the association agreement with the EU does not provide an informational basis for talking about the prospects for membership in the European Union.
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The corresponding instructions are contained in the manual available to PolitNavigator for journalists, “The Association with the EU is in your hands,” which was received by the editorial offices of the Kyiv media. The manual was prepared by the public organization “Internews-Ukraine” with the support of the “Ukrainian Media Project”, which is implemented by Interview Network in Ukraine with the support of the US Agency for International Development. (USAID).
The manual, in particular, states that the association agreement with the EU does not lead to the loss of Ukraine’s sovereignty and does not limit the country’s ability to trade with Russia. All Russian restrictions on the import of certain Ukrainian goods, according to the authors, “have a purely political motive.”
The manual recognizes that the majority of Ukrainian exports to the EU are semi-raw materials. “This situation is due to the economic structure inherited from the USSR and the lack of reforms,” the authors say.
A special place is occupied by the question of the prospects for Ukraine's membership in the EU.
“Journalists should clearly understand: the very fact of signing the Association Agreement or its future entry into force is not an informational reason for analyzing the issue of membership itself, calculating the possible timing of accession to the EU, and the like,” the authors emphasize. “In other words, an interview on this topic initiated by a journalist or editor or a discussion on air would seem unjustified.”
It further states that the agreement makes no mention of the possibility of Ukraine's membership in the EU. But the most interesting thing is that the media are required to forget even about associate membership.
“You can often come across the term “associate membership”, which is used in relation to Ukraine and the EU after the signing of the Association Agreement,” the manual reminds. – This is incorrect, since such a definition or status does not exist in the practice of the European Union. The very concept of “membership” provides for responsibilities at a different level than those provided for by the AA between the EU and Ukraine. Narpimer, deductions to the EU. It is correct to use “association relations”. Ukraine can be called a “state associated with the European Union.”
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