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Abstract:
Poland’s accession to the European Union and the dramatic Ukrainian presidential elections made 2004 a crucial year in which the shape of the Polish-Ukrainian Strategic Partnership has been determined for the medium term. This paper shows that although there is a broad foreign policy consensus on Ukraine in Poland and all Polish political parties support Ukrainian accession to the European Union, although opinions differ on policy detail. At one end of the spectrum are parties such as Law and Justice and Civic Platform, whose policies views Ukraine as serious and equal partner for Poland. At the other end is the League of Polish Families, whose rhetoric draws more on the Polish tradition of a civilising mission in the East. If Law and Justice and Civic Platform are forced into a coalition with the League of Polish Families after the next parliamentary election, the latter may have the capacity to obstruct and irritate but the overall direction of Polish foreign policy towards Ukraine will not change. Proof of Poland’s influence in Ukraine was provided by President Aleksander Kwasniewski’s key role as a mediator between the government and the opposition during the Orange Ukrainian revolution that followed the disputed second round of 2004’s contested presidential election. However, the future of the Polish-Ukrainian Strategic Partnership ultimately depends on the ability of Ukraine’s new president, Viktor Yushchenko, to transform this bi-lateral partnership into the bedrock of European Neighbourhood Policy, and the most important source of stability in the region.
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