Constructing European Neighborhood: Critical Perspectives from EU-Ukraine Interaction and Civil Society Actors

How can EU actorness be conceptualized within the context of Neighborhood? The central purpose of this essay is to contribute a “bottom-up” and more contextually sensitive perspective to the critical assessment of European Union actorness and, in this way, also contribute to a more inclusive understanding of Neighborhood as a regional cooperation project. In doing this, the essay also deals with local Ukrainian rather than EU-centric perspectives on the EU’s more general societal impacts. Based on research that specifically targeted civil society actors in Ukraine with clear pro-EU sympathies the essay explores the ambivalent nature of the European Union as a political actor on the international scene. This also includes perceptions of the evolving quality of the EU’s social and political influence. Rather than pre-supposing a specific geopolitical role for the EU within the so-called Neighborhood, this contribution will emphasize perceived contradictions and contested political and socio-cultural underpinnings of EU cooperation policies. At the same time, the paper will also indicate the ways in which local actors interpret the EU as a potential promoter of greater intercultural dialogue and social transformation. While the picture that emerges is one of a policy divide between the EU and Ukraine, spaces for social engagement and dialogue nevertheless exist and urgently need to be developed.