Target program “Civil diplomacy in action: post-soviet space”

After collapse of Soviet Union political situation in the region is characterized by multipolarity and the absence of effective mechanisms for international relations development. Baltic stated, Georgia and Ukraine choose European direction of own formation, distancing themselves from soviet past. Simultaneously, Russia is positioning itself as a legal successor of USSR and trying to obtain a status of influential international player by maintaining other states in the zone of its own impact. Such approach provokes large-scale conflicts which complicate searching of necessary compromises and making impossible full-fledged realization of any program interlinked with constructing “unite Europe” or combination European initiatives of “Eastern partnership” with post-soviet geopolitical projects.

Particular exacerbation was gained by conflict on the East of Ukraine which is accompanied with bloody warfare, unprecedented worsening of relation between Ukraine and Russia, falling of bilateral trade and indefinite perspectives for socio-political situation in the region. Attempts to find mutual consent by the mediation of western partners in frames of Normandy format haven’t given visible results yet, Minsk process can’t come out from the deadlock, meetings in Trilateral contact group are more and more transforming in formal event and opposite positions of conflicting sides leveled opportunity to reach consensus between ruling circles of Ukraine and Russia.
In these circumstances, we feel actualization of civil diplomacy as a source able to produce alternative discussion platform for searching algorithms to come out from the crises of Ukrainian-Russian relations and balancing cooperation between post-soviet countries which chose European vector of development with those, which form their politics on the other ideological and institutional basis.

Such understanding of situation underlay in formation of target program “Civil diplomacy in action: post-soviet space”, which is directed on intensification of non-governmental institutes usage and civil activists, experts, journalists and representatives of unprejudiced political establishment consolidation. The purpose of program is elaboration of common projects able to assist in resolving of existing problems, such as conflict between Russian and Ukraine, and to produce mechanisms of counteraction to possible threats – escalation of new interethnic contradictions, extension of separatism in post-soviet space, destructive influence of propaganda in informational field and further military or political destabilization in the region.

Program “Civil diplomacy in action: post-soviet space” stipulates realization of three consecutive stages.

Stage № 1. Make a discussion platform on the base of Civil Diplomacy Foundation. Join to its meeting maximal amount of experts, journalists, civil activists, volunteers, representatives of unprejudiced political establishment from post-soviet countries, specialists in East European problematic from USA and EU. Take into considerations possible feedback offers and initiatives for correcting or advancing form of discussion platform functioning.

Stage № 2. Organize systematic program work in form of round tables, panel discussions and online webinars. Set communicational channel between participants of discussion platform and state authorities.

Stage № 3.  In case of sufficient volunteer support and acquisition of appropriate partner ties, our work will be materialized in following results:

  • formation of permanent functioning expert hub;
  • coordination in its frames common position concerning conflict between Russia and Ukraine on the level of civil sector; estimation of main problem aspects in existing crisis and delineation of possible algorithms to overcome them;
  • creation of full-fledged informational resource with competent analytics and unprejudiced interpretation of real socio-political situation in region;
  • producing of practical recommendations and constructive offers for negotiations in Normandy format or working out opportunities to model a new road map for regulating conflict or maximal neutralization of its consequences for Ukraine in particular and region in common;
  • conducting sociological (quantitative) researches;
  • establishing an individual expert platform for representatives of civil sector from Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Moldova and Georgia for sharing with derived experience in producing functional mechanisms to counteract contemporary “hybrid” threats and preparation practical recommendations useful for state authorities. Resort to this format in frames of deepening cooperation with EU expert community will be directed on optimization of “Eastern partnership” program and searching mechanisms of its practical realization in new political realities of the region.Geopolitical position of Ukraine force to find ways how to realize aspirations for European integration with taking to consideration outlook peculiarities immanent to Ukrainian population, lasting economic relations with post-soviet countries and in conditions of “Russian factor” permanent influence. Even if present situation becomes “frozen” for indefinite terms, sooner or later, we have to take initiative in own hands for resolving conflict with Russia on the base of our national interest and formation of integral vision concerning further policy on post-soviet space. In other case, full-fledged integration in EU remains as an unattainable purpose and Ukraine will be threatened by loss of ability to be a subject of political process either in global political process or on the regional level. Civil diplomacy must get things moving!
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