The Fifth International Week is over!
The jubilee Fifth International Week, which this year was held under the slogan "Resilience and Rebuilding through Internationalization," has come to an end at West Ukrainian National University. This event became a platform for establishing contacts, strengthening cooperation, holding discussions and exchanging views.
Within the framework of I-WEEK 2023, an open discussion "What You Should Know About Ukraine's EU Membership Prospects" was held in the meeting room of the Academic Council of WUNU, attended by students and faculty of the B.D. Havrylyshyn Education and Research Institute of International Relations.
At the invitation of the Head of the Department of International Relations and Diplomacy Oksana Tulai, the meeting was moderated by Bohdan Ferens, PhD in Political Science, Deputy Secretary of the Ukrainian part of the EU-Ukraine Parliamentary Association Committee.
Bohdan Ferens shared his own research findings on the transnationalization of the political space of Ukraine and the EU. He noted that institutional and inter-party cooperation, interregional and cross-border cooperation, and Europeanization are important components of the transnationalization process. Bohdan Ferens emphasized that Europeanization is leading to the blurring of legal, institutional, geopolitical, cultural, and transactional boundaries. The expert also revealed the historical and legal aspects of relations between Ukraine and the EU, the specifics of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, and shared his views on Ukraine's fulfillment of the key criteria for EU accession. The panelists learned more about self-screening as an important prerequisite for taking further steps to open negotiations on EU accession.
The event was attended by Johan Busser, Swedish MP, Social Democrat, Head of the Swedish Parliamentary Delegation to the OSCE PA. Johan Busser said that today the world, including Sweden, is facing serious problems: wars, terrorism, climate change, etc. The Swedish politician highlighted the main historical stages of Sweden's integration into the EU. He paid special attention to the development of economic potential and educational policy of Sweden as a member of the European Union. The politician emphasized that Sweden supports Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in the context of the European integration course and expressed hope that our country will be able to overcome corruption, bring legislation closer to European standards in the field of human rights protection and ensure economic stability. However, the first priority is the end of the war and Ukraine's victory.
The participants discussed the political system of Sweden; how countries have integrated into the EU; European Union policy; political parties in the EU; Ukraine's accession to the EU: obstacles, conditions and processes; assessment of the implementation of the European Commission's recommendation; the European Council's decision to open certain "chapters"; closing negotiations on chapters and clusters; signing the accession agreement; ratification by all member states.
During the closing session, Kristof Leitl, President of the European Youth Forum EYFON, former President of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber and President of EUROCHAMBRES since 2018, addressed the participants.
We are grateful to all our partners, guests and participants who joined the Fifth International Week!
