The Western Balkans in the European Union: Perspective for good neighbourly relations
November 29, 2017Kosovo in Europe: Ten Years of Contested Statehood in unsettled neighbourhood
February 27, 2018Eastern Partnership Reflection Forum in the framework of the Belarussian Presidency of the CEI
“The European Union and its Eastern Partners. Current approaches to regional cooperation “
Minsk, Belarus, 10-12 December 2017
On 10-12 December 2017, the Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe, Minsk Dialogue Track-II Initiative and Centre international de formation européenne organised in Minsk,
Belarus, the first Eastern Partnership Reflection Forum. This initiative is the result of a cooperation between a network of European think-tanks, the Belarusian Presidency of the Central European Initiative (CEI) and key members states of the European Union, as well as the
EU delegation in Minsk.
During the Eastern Partnership Reflection Forum, 50 experts from 30 European states (EU
member states, Eastern Partnership countries, Switzerland, Russia) and 20 representatives of
national administrations and international organizations (CEI, EU, EEU…) convened around a
large roundtable to foster an inclusive discussion on regional cooperation and pan-European
rapprochement. The Reflection Forum strengthened expert-to- expert contact, offered participants
new opportunities for cooperation and encouraged joint publications and cooperation projects. It
bridged the gap between academia and politics and created synergies by fostering cooperation
between these two important actors.
The Eastern Partnership Reflection Forum will be followed in 2018 by a series of public
roundtables aimed at disseminating the results of the reflection engaged in Minsk.
