EU integration of Ukraine
across borders

with the help of the V4

The project is co-financed by the Governments of Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia through Visegrad Grants from International Visegrad Fund. The mission of the fund is to advance ideas for sustainable regional cooperation in Central Europe.

For more information please visit: www.visegradfund.org.

Overview Outputs Partners Events Factsheet

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The Association of the European Border Regions (AEBR) is the most prestigious and the oldest advocacy organisation of cross-border cooperation (CBC) in Europe. Before the Ukrainian war, the association had several Ukrainian members, Ukrainian-Russian euroregions included. These cooperation initiatives had a special EUisation mission of the Ukrainian and Russian regions, which was abruptly interrupted by the war. At the same time, the war accelerated the negotiations targeting the EU integration of Ukraine. The Eastern European country signed the association agreement with the EU in 2017 and since then, several steps have been made in order to adapt the common European values, to improve the administrative system, to introduce the European policies, but the integration process was very slow and it seemed to be long-lasting. As a consequence of the war, Ukraine was granted the candidate status in June 2022, half a year after the application. However, even after the war, Ukraine will have to make remarkable efforts until the accession. During this process, the lessons and experiences of the Visegrad Four countries, gained during the EU accession process and beyond, might be beneficial and usable for the Ukrainian partners. Cross-border cooperation can have a key role in this process, as has been the case for the Visegrad countries since the establishment of the first Euroregion in the former communist bloc, namely the Euroregion Neisse-Nisa-Nysa in 1991.

Within the framework of the project funded by the International Visegrad Fund, the partners aim to organise two events during the annual event of the Association of European Border Regions to be held in Košice between 8 and 11 November 2023.

International conference
The first day (10 November) is dedicated to an international conference to be held in Košice, on the EU integration of Ukraine and the applicable V4 experiences in the field of cross-border cooperation. Through our conference we would like to contribute to this knowledge sharing exercise and to initiate lasting partnership promoting the transfer of experiences during the EU integration process of Ukraine. First, the nearly 200 participants of the AEBR’s annual event coming from different EU countries, from Spain to Finland, and from Ireland to Romania, will get information on the achievements of Ukraine in the integration process, through the presentations of policy-makers and experts from Ukraine. Besides, a round-table discussion will be held where political and diplomacy experts of the V4 countries will share their experiences related to the EU integration. Furthermore, local and regional actors from the four countries and Ukraine will speak about the role of CBC in the EUisation process: its soft diplomatic, resource generating, trust building and regional development aspects.
Study tour
Second, on the day after the conference, we will organise a study tour for the participants to Uzhhorod, to the Regional Council of the Transcarpathian Region in order to get first-hand information on the situation in Ukraine, on the results of the administrative reform and the activities of the different regional organisations in developing their ties with the V4 countries.

The event is designed to boost the Košice Platform initiative established in 2019 with the aim of supporting the integration process of the Eastern Partnership countries.

Central European Service for Cross-Border Initiatives (HU)

Central European Service for Cross-Border Initiatives – Carpathia (SK)

Faculty of Arts, University of Prešov (SK)

Technical University of Liberec (CZ)

Uzhhorod National University, Research Institute of EU Territorial Cooperation (UA)

WSB University, Research Institute On Territorial and Inter-Organizational Cooperation (PL)

Association of European Border Regions (AEBR)

Within the framework of the Association of European Border Regions (AEBR) a one-day V4 conference took place in Košice. The focus of the event was on Ukraine’s EU integration, as well as the experiences of the Visegrad Four countries in the field of cross-border cooperation during the EU accession process and beyond. The event ended with a study trip to Uzhhorod.

Go to the event report

The agenda:

Friday, 10 November 2023

Ukraine on the road of EU integration (reconstruction, cooperation, pre-accession). What lessons to learn for Ukraine from the V4 countries’ experiences on the field of cross-border cooperation?

Location: Hotel Yasmin (Tyršovo nábrežie 1675/1, 040 01 Košice)

08.00 Registration is open

09.00 Greetings

Moderator: Ms Caitriona Mullan, Associate Expert of AEBR

Mr Karol Pataky, Vice-President of Košice Self-governing Region, host of the event
Mr Olivér Várhelyi, Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, European Commission (online)
Mr Karl-Heinz Lambertz, President of the AEBR, Speaker of the Parliament of the German-speaking Community of Belgium
Mr Petr Mareš, Director of the International Visegrad Fund
Mr Kopylenko Oleksandr, Deputy Chairman of the Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation

09.30 Achievements of Ukraine on the field of EU integration

Moderator: Ms Yuliia Fetko, Director of the Research Institute on European Territorial Cooperation of the Uzhhorod National University

Mr Oleksandr Ilkov, Director General of the Government Office for Coordination on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine (online): Ukraine’s progress towards membership in the EU, preparations for accession negotiations – government point of view
Ms Myroslava Lendel, Vice-Rector, Uzhhorod National University: Universities as actors of Ukraine’s adaptation to EU policies
Mr Mykhailo Buromenskyi, Professor, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv Co-chairman of the Commission on Legal Reform under the President of Ukraine: Legislative support for the European perspective of Ukraine
Mr Yaroslav Lazur, Dean of the Faculty of Law, Uzhhorod National University, Member of the Scientific Advisory Council under the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine: Territorial cooperation in the context of the integration of Ukraine

10.30 Coffee break

11.00 CBC in the V4 countries – lessons and future perspectives

Moderator: Mr Rudolf Bauer, Director of CESCI Carpathia, Košice

Questions & answers

13.00 Lunch break

14.30 Cross-border cooperation in the V4 countries – the daily practice

Moderator: Ms Kitti Dubniczki, Director of CESCI, Budapest

15.30 Coffee break

16.00 Round-table discussion: What lessons can be learnt from the EU integration of the Visegrad countries?

Moderator: Mr Martín Guillermo-Ramírez, Secretary General of AEBR

Ms Nathalie Verschelde, deputy head of unit, DG REGIO, European Commission
Mr Michal Lebduška, Research Fellow, Association for International Affairs, Czechia
Mr Gyula Ocskay, Secretary General of CESCI, Hungary
Mr Wojciech Opioła, Assistant Professor, Opole University, Poland
Mr Eduard Buraš, advisor to the PM for cross-border cooperation, Slovakia

17.15 Presentation of AEBR Annual Events 2024

Martín Guillermo-Ramírez, Secretary General of AEBR

17.30 Closing

Saturday, 11 November 2023

Study visit to Uzhhorod

9.00 (CET) Departure from Košice in front of Hotel Yasmin by bus

11.30 (EET) Arrival in Uzhhorod (Regional Council of the Transcarpathian Region)

Moderator: Mr Yaroslav Lazur, Dean of the Faculty of Law, Uzhhorod National University, Member of the Scientific Advisory Council under the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (Uzhhorod, Ukraine)

Greetings:

Mr Viktor Mykyta, Governor of Transcarpathia, Head of the Transcarpathian Regional Military Administration
Mr Roman Saray, President of the County Council, Co-president of the Tisza EGTC
Mr Karl-Heinz Lambertz, President of the Association of European Border Regions
Mr Volodymyr Smolanka, Rector of Uzhhorod National University
Mr Gyula Ocskay, Secretary General of the Central European Service for Cross-Border Initiatives

Presentations:

Mr Roman Saray, President of the County Council, Co-president of the Tisza EGTC: Cross-border activities of the Transcarpathian Regional Council
Mr Ivan Myronyuk, Vice-Rector for Scientific Research of Uzhhorod National University and Ms Yuliia Fetko, Director of the Research Institute on European Territorial Cooperation of the Uzhhorod National University: With science for cooperation
Ms Natalya Nosa-Pylypenko, Project Manager of the Regional Innovation Agency, Uzhhorod and Mr Mihai Patrascu, General Manager of the Satu Mare International Airport (Romania): With development projects for cross-border cooperation

Questions and answers

13.00 Interactive session with the AEBR members (moderated by Martín Guillermo-Ramírez)

14.00 Lunch at Restaurant Grant

16.00 Return to Košice

Timeframe:

Project start date: 20/09/2023

Project end date: 30/11/2023

Budget:

Total V4 contribution: EUR 21,300

Project coordinator:

Gyula Ocskay
e-mail: gyula.ocskay@cesci-net.eu
phone: +36-20/355-3385

EU integration of Ukraine across borders