Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the European Union has responded by imposing many sanctions on Russia and providing Ukraine with military aid and humanitarian help. As a result of the crisis, the European Union has considered ways to wean certain Member States off of Russian energy, and it has extended temporary protection to Ukrainians and other people leaving the country.
Association Agreement Between the European Union and Ukraine
An association agreement between the European Union and Ukraine went into effect in 2016. The framework established by the deal will allow Ukraine to move closer to the European Union in terms of politics, economics, and law. Ukrainian president at the time, Viktor Yanukovych, refused to sign the association agreement in 2013. Despite his seeming closeness to Russia, Yanukovych blamed Russian resistance to the pact for his country’s failure to sign. As a result of President Yanukovych’s decision, there were widespread demonstrations, and the government responded with force (Crs Reports). He was forced out of office by the parliament in Ukraine in February 2014, and he eventually made his way to Russia. The new administration signed the EU deal.
The reaction of the European Union to Russia’s Annexation of Crimea
Russia invaded and occupied Crimea soon after President Yanukovych was removed from office. Pro-Russian separatists responded with rallies in the Donbas area of Eastern Ukraine, eventually seizing some of the territories in April 2014. The European Union has called on Russia to get out of Crimea and has criticized its invasion there. Russia’s membership in the G8 and the European Union’s plans to continue negotiations on a new cooperation pact were halted.
Officials in Ukraine responsible for the unrest were hit with penalties from the European Union. Bans on travel and the freezing of assets were implemented. In addition to U.S. and UN sanctions, the European Union imposed its measures on Russia in July 2014 (Pifer, np). The export of dual-use commodities to the military was also prohibited, along with the import and export of guns and associated equipment. Export quotas for energy-related equipment and technologies were also imposed. Since 2014, these restrictions have remained in place.
On February 24, 2022, Russia officially launched its invasion of Ukraine. EU leaders warned they would “impose high and severe costs on Russia for its behavior” in a statement issued the same day by the European Council (Pifer, np).
Sanctions on Russia by the European Union
The United States, the United Kingdom, and other allies have collaborated on these sanctions. On February 22, after President Putin had signed the decree recognizing the self-declared separate republics in the Donbas area, more sanctions were placed on Russia. February 25 saw the announcement of new penalties, with further extensions on the 28th, 2nd, and 15th of the following month (Crs Reports).
President Putin, Government Ministers, all members of the Russian parliament, and different business figures have all been added to the growing list of persons and businesses subject to an asset freeze and travel restriction. Particularly the financial penalties on Russia include the freezing of assets at some banks, a ban on the use of the SWIFT messaging system for financial transactions, and the denial of access to EU financial markets by Russian banks.
The European Commission unveiled its blueprint on March 8 to wean Europe off Russia’s fossil fuels by 2030. The Commission also detailed plans to combat Europe’s soaring energy costs and store gas for the next cold season. According to the Commission, this may result in a 63 percent drop in EU requests for Russian gas as the year ends.
90% of the European Union’s gas needs are met by imports, with Russia accounting for around 45% of those supplies (Crs Reports). About a quarter of the world’s oil imports and over half of the world’s coal imports come from Russia. There has been talking of a restriction on Russian energy imports from a few EU members. Countries like Germany, which relies heavily on these imports, are hesitant to go to such lengths. However, the German government has said that it would not approve the functioning of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Germany.
EU’s Backing of Ukraine
Contributions from the Military
On February 28, 2022, the European Union (EU) announced that it would provide funding for the acquisition and shipment to Ukraine of heavy weaponry. As far as we know, this would be the first time the EU has ever supplied a third nation with weapons. There is a budget of €450 million for this purpose from the European Peace Facility. In the budget, fifty million euros were set up for items that would not be considered weapons. The EU foreign ministers decided on March 21 to give an extra €500 million via the European Peace Facility (Deutsch et al. np).
Temporary protection for people fleeing Ukraine
As of March 4, the EU has passed laws offering asylum to those who fled Ukraine’s violence. Ukrainian citizens and their dependents who were permanent residents of Ukraine as of February 24, 2022, are included. This includes family members of foreign citizens or stateless individuals granted international protection in Ukraine.
In this case, you’ll be able to enjoy a period of temporary protection lasting up to three years. If the EU Council determines that it is safe to return to Ukraine, the program might conclude early. Refugees from Ukraine will be granted full rights to live and work in any EU member state and access to healthcare and education for their children. Help for the host Member States will be coordinated and funded by the EU.
Economic and Humanitarian Support
On March 1, 2022, the European Commission announced a €500 million emergency aid package for individuals impacted by the violence in Ukraine. It is projected that the extra €100 million in value of supplies will be given under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism by EU Member States. Ukraine and the neighboring nations that have taken in refugees from Ukraine have received humanitarian help.
Ukraine was the recipient of a €1.2 billion emergency Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) loan scheme announced by the European Commission on February 1, 2022. Up to 50% of this was supposed to arrive by March. €5 billion in MFA loans were disbursed between 2014 and 2021. Since the release of those monies was conditioned on changes implemented in Ukraine, some of them had been withheld.
The French president believes that the whole continent needs reform in light of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. He initially proposed the notion of this community in a speech he gave at the closing of the Future of Europe Conference in May, as Russia’s aggressive attack against Ukraine entered the third month. At the time, Macron argued that the European Union was insufficient as a framework for organizing the continent and that a more comprehensive system was needed. The European Commission’s President Ursula von der Leyen advocated for this new community in her September State of the Union speech (Tidey, np).
Application for European Union Membership by Ukraine
Ukraine’s application to join the European Union was filed on February 28 of that year, 2022. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has proposed joining the European Union using “a new special mechanism” to achieve quick membership. On 10-11 March, in Versailles, EU leaders proclaimed, “Ukraine belongs to our European family,” and pledged to strengthen the EU’s relationship with Ukraine. The EU Council has requested the European Commission’s assessment of Ukraine’s membership application (Csr Reports). Several European Union (EU) Member States that historically were part of the Soviet bloc have urged the EU to quickly launch Ukraine’s membership application. Others, however, inside the EU, have taken a more reserved approach, citing the protracted accession process as a reason for their reluctance.
Works Cited
“Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine: European Union Responses and Implications for U.S.-EU Relations” Crsreports, July 28, 2022, https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IN/IN11897. Accessed January 1, 1970.
Deutsch, Jillian, et al. “EU Approves 450 Million Euros of Arms Supplies for Ukraine – Bloomberg” Bloomberg, February 27, 2022, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-27/eu-approves-450-million-euros-in-lethal-military-aid-for-ukraine?leadSource=uverify%20wall. Accessed January 1, 1970.
Pifer, Steven. “Crimea: Six years after illegal annexation,” Brookings, March 17. 2020, https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2020/03/17/crimea-six-years-after-illegal-annexation/. Accessed January 1, 1970.
Tidey, Alice. “European Political Community: Europe hails united stand over Russia’s war in Ukraine | Euronews” Euronews, October 7, 2022, https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2022/10/06/european-political-community-european-leaders-gather-to-discuss-new-club-of-nations. Accessed January 1, 1970.
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