On May 1, Ukraine will become neighbor of the European Union both de jure and de facto, since on this day ten new members are to join the Union of Coal and Steel. In this connection, great responsibility falls upon Ukraine, since our western borders will in fact become EU eastern ones. Unifying EU and Ukraine’s legislations alone will be insufficient; we need to equip Ukraine’s borders, in the broad sense, according to European standards.
Recall that reforming Ukraine’s border department and updating the system and technology of the border safety started as long ago as 2003. The State Border Service (SBS) keeps perfecting the model of border protection in the context of major principles of the border policy in Europe. The SBS’s new step on the way to European standards in securing border safety was the State Border Service of Ukraine: Step by Step toward the European Standards international conference attended, along with official Kyiv representatives, by heads of law enforcement bodies and representatives of the EU and CIS countries’ embassies, as well as of the International Organization for Migration’s mission in Ukraine, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Office, and International Center for Migration Policy Development. The event’s major goal, according to the SBS head Mykola Lytvyn, was demonstrating Ukraine’s contribution to the collective and borders safety system of Europe to the EU countries’ border departments and international organizations. Mr. Lytvyn expressed his hope that EU representatives would show understanding and support uniting efforts in fighting international crime. “We expect to hear not only evaluations but also open criticism and concrete proposals on the equipment of our common border,” Mr. Lytvyn said, adding that every country should be self-sufficient in terms of equipping its borders.
Referring to Ukrainian border guards as the avant-garde of our country’s European integration, Deputy Foreign Minister Oleksandr Chaly suggested to the conference participants a major principle for securing the EU borders, according to which the new border of the united Europe should be viewed as a common European-Ukrainian border. Simultaneously, as it followed from the deputy minister’s speech, our executive authorities intend to be guided in these issues by purely pragmatic considerations. Mr. Chaly made this clear for the EU representatives, saying that “without real steps in simplifying visa regime and support in the fight against illegal migration there will be no progress on the way to signing a readmission agreement between Ukraine and the EU.” In the view of people’s deputy of Ukraine, head of the parliamentary Defense Committee Heorhy Kriuchkov, cooperation is among most urgent conditions for securing border safety in the EU and Ukraine. “A paper curtain can sometimes be worse than an iron one,” Mr. Kriuchkov stressed.
Acting head of the European Commission Delegation to Ukraine Steffen Skovmand agreed with Ukrainian authorities’ representatives, saying that the EU enlargement should not bring new divisions in Europe. Stating that the European neighborhood is to help Ukraine to bring itself closer to the European family, Mr. Skovmand said, “We understand that this is a common border, meaning that our goals in the sphere of collective security are also common.” In the view of Jeffrey Lobowitz, head of the International Organization for Migration representation in Ukraine, the main result of the conference is that representatives of thirty countries found understanding and outlined prospects for further cooperation in the sphere of border safety. Mr. Lobowitz is convinced that the EU enlargement will be no obstacle for normal communication of ordinary people on both sides of the border, under the condition that the enlargement takes place in compliance with the planned schedule. However, this is perhaps a long-term prospect, and it will take time to adjust to norms and standards envisioning a painless transition to the status of European neighbor. This is a task for Ukrainian authorities who, in their own words, stand for Ukraine’s European strategic course not only in words but in deeds.