Ukraina julgeolekustamine Euroopa Liidu ametlikus diskursuses

Abstract

Ukraine has been independent now for over 20 years, but it still has many issues to resolve in order to be a fully democratic country. Historically, Ukraine has been a part of the Austria-Hungarian Empire and also of the Soviet Union, so it has been influenced by both – Western and Eastern cultures. After the collapse of communism, Ukraine declared its independence and so began the long road towards recovering its own identity. After the Orange revolution it seemed like the country is heading down the path European Union wished for – democracy and a state governed by law. But as the elected president Viktor Yushchenko did not enjoy a truly successful term, Viktor Yanukovych was voted to be his successor in 2010. After his appointment as the president of Ukraine, there has been a slow decline concerning human rights, and a silencing of the political opposition. The ongoing case with Yulia Tymoshenko has diminished European Union’s belief in Ukrainian authorities and postponed the signing of the Association Agreement between two powers. For the European Union, Ukraine is very important for many reasons. Firtly, concerning energy security, as Ukraine is the most important gas transit country and therefore a security concern if anything should happen to the transit route again, as it happened in January 2009. Secondly, as Ukraine has an extensive land border with the EU, it is also important that the country shared EU’s visions and understandings about the importance of human rights and democratic values. Ukraine is the leading country whose citizens are sent back from the EU borders, so illegal immigration and human trafficking are also priorities which need to be dealt with. All the reasons mentioned above make Ukraine a key partner. Ukraine is one of the targeted countries in European Neighbourhood Policy, which sets goals and recommendations for reform in many key areas. Established and effective bilateral relations with the aim of deepening the economic co-operation, are the main targets for the European Community. So all in all, Ukraine with its size and role in energy policy is a country that cannot be afforded to be overlooked by the EU. The aim of this thesis is to analyze the key areas and topics concerning Ukraine which are being securitized in the EU’s official discourse. The goal is to find out why the European Union has chosen specific areas for securitization in its official discourse, which includes key speeches and important documents, which also make recommendations and demands for both parties – Ukraine and the European Union. Thesis follows the concept of securitization first introduced by the Copenhagen School. It is a process-oriented theory where at the centre is the speech act concept, which can be either in form of a request, warning or a claim. The process of securitization firstly needs a referent object or in other words something that has a legal claim to survive when facing an existential threat. Secondly, there must be a securitizing actor who or what makes the securitizing move. Finally, there has to be an audience that is influenced and persuaded to perceive that the referent object is being threatened and something must be done to counter the threat. The methodology is based on Lene Hansen’s concept of discourse analysis and her first model of intertextuality, where only the official discourse is being researched. The official discourse includes key speeches by important politicians like the presidents of the European Parliament and the European Commission, also by commissioners and representatives. The documents between the EU and Ukraine, that establish the official relationship between the two sides, are for example the European Neighbourhood Policy Action Plan Ukraine and the Country Strategy Paper for Ukraine 2007 – 2013. The timeframe for this thesis is 2005 – 2011, period from the adoption of the Action Plan until the EU – Ukraine summit in December 2011. After the careful analysis of key documents and speeches, the main findings were the following: 1. The European Union uses securitization mainly when talking about Ukraine as a gas transit country. The energy crisis in 2009 left a strong mark on the entire European Community, so it is important to avoid this happening ever again. Process-oriented securitization concept helps to raise this topic to the higher politics, thus making sure that everybody listens to the speaker or in other words - the securitizing actors. 2. Illegal immigration, ineffective border control and violation of human rights are also extremely important topics for the European Union, as it considers itself to be the protector of the European community alongside with its rights and thus wants to control Ukraine’s actions in these areas. Illegal immigration destabilizes the borders and as it often brings along crime and human trafficking, it needs to be avoided at any cost. Therefore, the solution is to enhance the border control capabilities and train more experts, who are qualified to deal with this problem. Human rights are the core for the European identity and for the entire European Union. The current imprisonment of Yulia Tymoshenko serves as a negative example of the human rights violation for the entire world to see. The EU does not want to have a neighbour, who does not support democratic values and the right to free speech, as they define freedom and democracy. 3. In their speeches, political leaders point out the need for establishing even stronger ties with the Ukrainian leaders, since it is vital for a successful co-operation in dealing with energy import, stable gas transit system and improving democracy including human rights. The constant and undisrupted flow of gas is extremely important for the EU, as many member states obtain the gas that arrives from Ukraine. But on the same time the European Union cannot stand by and do nothing while political opposition is being suppressed. Therefore many politicians are willing to co-operate only when certain conditions are fulfilled, including Ukraine adopting European core values as free speech and a fair and strong legal system. 4. The most common speech act in the securitization process when talking about Ukraine is claim. Warning and request can also be found, but not as often. In conclusion, after looking into the process of securitization in the European Union’s official discourse for Ukraine, it is clear that its foreign policy is connected with the questions of energy, stable gas transit system and human rights with democratic values. Ukraine is a very important partner for the EU, as both parties have signed treaties and documents, concerning increasing co-operation. Ukraine is one of the target countries in the European Neighbourhood Policy, having adopted an Action Plan. The bilateral relations and co-operation is important for the stability in the entire region and for its growth and development. The securitization of Ukraine in the European Union’s official discourse reflects also the self portrait of the EU as the dominant force in the region. The European identity includes the promotion of human rights, the protection of European values and tolerance, but also the capability to control its dependence on the import of gas and energy and as the leading power to securitize areas which are inadequate or insufficient according to the European Union’s self perception. As the current situation in Ukraine is not satisfactory for the EU, it is also important to find a solution in the near future between the two powers. It is also essential to adopt the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, because it states the future relations. This agreement would be an excellent source for future analysis between the EU and Ukraine.