Press Release: The Eastern Partnership: getting down to work

Four weeks after the launch of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) the EU and its eastern neighbours were getting down to work. One of the innovations of the EaP is a new multilateral dimension to relations with these countries alongside the bilateral path of cooperation. The first Eastern Partnership (EaP) multilateral platform will be held on 5 June, 2009, in Brussels. It will focus on democracy, good governance and stability. The other platforms, devoted to economic integration, energy and people to people contacts, will also be launched during the month of June. The aim of the platforms is to support the eastern partners' efforts to approximate to EU standards, to foster exchanges of experience and best practice and to strengthen contacts between them. Tomorrow's meeting will concentrate on mapping out fields for co-operation, and will discuss the launch of two Flagship Initiatives, on border management and prevention, preparedness and response to disasters.