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ABSTRACT
The paper aims at outlining the EU policy - including Poland's role in its development - towards the Union's eastern neighbours encompassed by the European Neighbourhood Policy and Eastern Partnership. The situation of the EU's eastern neighbours has become considerably complicated in the last two years (2014-2015). The Euromaidan revolution and war in the Donbas have led the EU Member States to direct their efforts towards stabilising the situation in Ukraine. As a consequence, discussions of future prospects and the EU policy towards Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus have been set aside. In addition, wars and conflicts occurring in the south of Europe along with the immigrants flooding southern EU Member States have led to the eastern neighbours and their problems being neglected (despite the fact that Ukraine is engulfed in war).
Keywords: Eastern Policy of the European Union, Poland, EU's eastern neighbours, European Neighbourhood Policy, Eastern Partnership, Eastern Europe
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INTRODUCTION
The paper aims at outlining the EU policy - including Poland's role in its development - towards the Union's eastern neighbours encompassed by the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and Eastern Partnership (EaP).1 The situation of the EU's eastern neighbours has become considerably complicated in the last two years (2014- 2015). The Euromaidan revolution and war in the Donbas have led the EU Member States to direct their efforts towards stabilising the situation in Ukraine. As a consequence, discussions of future prospects and the EU policy towards Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus have been set aside. In addition, wars and conflicts occurring in the south of Europe along with the immigrants flooding southern EU Member States have led to the eastern neighbours and their problems being neglected (despite the fact that Ukraine is engulfed in war). Therefore, due to several internal problems present in the EU (the Eurozone crisis,2 Brexit, nationalist parties gaining power in the individual Member States), the validity of the eastern policy ought to be revisited. Will EU decision-makers seek prospects in the eastern countries or will they merely focus on stabilising the situation in Ukraine and normalising relations with Russia (in mid-term perspective)? The paper will also attempt to indicate the required modifications in the logic of the ENP and...