MAIN FEATURES OF THE UKRAINIAN – SWEDISH RELATIONS

Foreign policy of the Kingdom of Sweden demonstrates a Northern European country embodiment which represents a primary united Europe democracy, and determines policy of the wealthy Nordic region at large. For a long term the state confidently has been spreading its influence across the continent and demonstrating its own high positions recognized in an international environment and diplomatic prestige on the international level.

Concerning the Ukraine a large part of its inhabitants living in the globalization era and sharp political transformations that will be keeping in the near future, feel a threat to a usual social and economic life structure. The country citizens are affected by the ceaseless social imbalance inside the country; it has formed at a post-bipolar period in certain social strata. This requires a public tasks setting on the realization of challenges of paradigmatic development of Ukraine and its global long-term political and economic stability. Sweden has solved this problem by adopting in 2006 the national model of sustained development.

The bilateral relations position themselves as the fundamental principles of Swedish foreign policy landmarks, and then one may predict that Ukrainian – Swedish relations have the perspective in case:

1) the Kingdom clearly sees the opportunities improving the real political and economic situation;

2) Sweden and Ukraine are having fruitful self-interests;

3) Sweden is a reliable consistent, predictable political partner and an impartial economic manager;

4) taking into consideration the abovementioned, the state does not exclude a fruitful long-term high level bilateral relations between Sweden and Ukraine on the European integration direction.

It is worth quoting one of the official information sources which says that «The Ukrainian-Swedish relations are stable and mutually beneficial bilateral ones that are characterized by a high level development in the political sphere including the European aspirations support, intense trade and economic and investment cooperation, as well as successful cooperation within the framework of Swedish technical assistance program in Ukraine» [1].

Separation of Euro-Atlantic aspiration of young Ukrainian state coincided with the victory of right-wind forces and forming a new coalition government of Sweden headed by the charismatic politician Carl Bild. In 1991 his philosophy and reforming steps of integration of Sweden to EU membership were highly appreciated by the political mainstream in Europe, but the way proposed by him in political science of scholarship «a doctrine of Bild» [2]. It is known that the abovesaid «doctrine Bildt» sets the cardinal goal to move away Russia from Baltic region as far as possible. Such change is possible through the real prospect Western civilization and the former Soviet republics convergence. Mostly because of this reason, an experienced Swedish politician Carl Bildt has defended the two final waves of EU enlargements. Recently this famous head of MFA of Sweden has been an entering avid supporter of Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia to the EU. Thus, it is worth looking for one of the key reasons for creating the «Eastern Partnership» program [3].

The development of cooperation between our countries started in 1995 as it was noted on the Embassy of Sweden in Ukraine official website. 71 million U.S. dollars were allocated to the projects realization from 1995 to 2006. It was aimed at the reforms supporting acceleration of the European aspirations of Ukraine [4].

As it was defined by Stephen Gullgren, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden to Ukraine: «Sweden remains a stalwart believer in European aspirations of Ukraine» [5].

It should be mentioned that the governments of Sweden and Poland in the middle of October 2010 made a letter signed by the Foreign Ministers Radoslaw Sikorski and Carl Bildt and addressed to the head of the EU diplomacy Catherine Ashton and to the EU Commissioner on Enlargement European neighborhood policy to Stefan Fule. According to the Swedish-Polish letter, the EU should offer «a future expanding» for eastern neighbors: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. According to the Swedish and Polish ministers the abovementioned countries are European ones, and, thus, have a special status in accordance with the EU agreements [6]. Incidentally, this document focuses on strategically important issues: promoting stability, economic development and management of EU's Eastern neighbors. Because of this, the EU is interested in close cooperation with the Eastern partners [7].

The given document is aimed at developing goals as well as the task of carrying out the reforms, strengthening the democracy, keeping equitable and sustainable development and harmonization with European standards. Its basis values prove the Swedish strategy of cooperation with Ukraine. The document is being adopted by the Government of Sweden one time for a few years.

An additional example of the Kingdom’s extensive attention to the European policy of Ukraine issues from the results of the Visegrad Joint Statement of the four member states Foreign Ministers, with the Ukraine and Sweden participation, regarding to the Ukrainian future cooperation developing and the EU integration [8].

Related to the Swedish assistance to Ukraine such a support has to be conducted in close contact with the European Commission. The Swedish assistance and the European Neighbourhood and Partnership tool have naturally completed each other in the abovementioned Strategy. The document’s operational time bounded to the same EU economic cycle has been coordinated either [9].

Swedish-Ukrainian inter-state political communication gradually fit into the complicated system of the international relations. It promotes well-established mechanism of the feedback consolidation and productive impact upon the bilateral relations evolution. Every time Kingdom has been making persistent attempts in realizing a long-term political cooperation towards the intensification of Ukrainian European integration aspirations. Such a factor is only an eloquent complement to the Ukrainian reformist position which should be strictly implemented despite the presence of strong Swedish lobbying towards the European integration.

It should be noted that negotiations on the agreement concerning Ukrainian and European cooperation is the first and foremost strategic process with interdependent global consequences for all future political order in Europe. There should be formed a final single understanding of nature, assumptions and effects of European integration into the domestic politics. So, resolute reforming policy, consensus inside the political elites, legal institutions independence are capable to strengthen Ukraine's commitment to the civilization choice rapid direction. That is a fundamental principle on the way to determining unambiguous civilization course in Europe.

Література:

1. Україна - Швеція / Укрінформ-новини // – 2010 [Електронний ресурс]. Режим доступу: http://svit.ukrinform.ua/Sweden/sweden.php?menu=attitudes – заголовок з екрану.

2. Kaminskyi Y., Shevchenko A. Foreign policy of Sweden concerning the Ukraine. «Politics in the Hard Times: International Relations Responses to the Financial Crisis»: SGIR 7^th Pan-European Conference on International Relations, (Stockholm, Sweden 9-11 September 2010) / The Swedish Institute of International Affairs.: Johan Eriksson [and others]. Stockholm: The Swedish Institute of International Affairs, 2010.

3. Північний вимір євроінтеграції України – які перспективи? / «Дзеркало тижня» // – 2009 [Електронний ресурс]. - Режим доступу: http://dt.ua/articles/55989 – заголовок з екрану.

4. Розвиток співпраці з Україною / Embassy of Sweden in Kyiv // – 2011 [Електронний ресурс]. Режим доступу: http://www.swedenabroad.com/Page____38214.aspx – заголовок з екрану.

5. Гуллгрен С. Швеція та Україна: партнерство заради майбутнього // Національна безпека і оборона № 1(105) – 2009 р. С.2.

6. Letter to Baroness Catherine Ashton European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy European Commission Vice President for External Relations/ Carl Bild, Radoslaw Sikorski // 2010. [Електронний ресурс]. – Режим доступу: http://www.sweden.gov.se/content/1/c6/15/44/58/af1b951b.pdf – заголовок з екрану.

7. «Східне Партнерство» – новий вимір євроінтеграції чи євроінтеграційний паліатив для України?/ Юлія Мовчан // 2009. [Електронний ресурс]. – Режим доступу: http://www.viche.info/journal/1470/ – заголовок з екрану.

8. Зарицький О. В-4 + / Зарицький О. // Зовнішні справи № 7 -2008. [Електронний ресурс]. – Режим доступу: http://uaforeignaffairs.com/article.html/print?id=172 – заголовок з екрану.

9. Samarbetsstrategi for utvecklingssamarbetet med Ukraina. Januari 2009 – December 2013. / Regeringskansiliet // 2009. [Електронний ресурс]. – Режим доступу: http://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/openaid/original/Ukraina_samarbetsstrategi.pdf?1300459508 – заголовок з екрану.