DAVID MILIBAND: EASTERN PARTNERSHIP CAN BE A STEP TOWARD POSSIBLE EU MEMBERSHIP

PanARMENIAN.Net
28.10.2009 11:50 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband sees the Eastern
Partnership, the recently launched new framework for cooperation
between the European Union and Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia,
Moldova and Ukraine as a "step toward possible membership" of the
Union.

"To Europe’s East, poor governance, the financial crisis, and frozen
conflicts are critical causes of instability," he said speaking at
the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.

"The Eastern Partnership should be not only a stepping stone towards
possible membership, but a crucial vehicle for stability, because
through integration into the single market we can promote economic
reform and drive economic growth; and if the countries on our east
join the common energy community it will enhance not only their energy
security but also our own," Mr. Miliband said.