Boris Babin, Legal Advisor at BARRISTERS, took part in a meeting of experts at the "New Europe" Center

CNE Club: What Foreign Policy Challenges Does Ukraine Face?

On June 10, the New Europe Center held its annual event—the New Europe Center Club—which provided an informal setting to discuss the challenges facing Ukraine on the international stage. One of the main goals was to identify the most pressing topics for future research that think tanks could undertake.

The crisis in Moldova, the future of the Minsk Agreements, the reintegration of Donbas, and the new president’s upcoming foreign policy moves were among the main topics discussed by participants. The CNE Club was attended by specialists in international relations and security—including experts from think tanks and the non-governmental sector, as well as government officials. In particular, the government was represented by Vadym Prystaiko, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration; Hanna Hopko, Chair of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Foreign Affairs; Olga Stefanishyna, Director General of the Government Office for Coordination of European and Euro-Atlantic Integration; Vasyl Khymynets, Director of the First European Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine; and Petro Beshta, Deputy Director of the Political Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

The “New Europe” Center Club is an annual event that provides an opportunity to discuss the organization’s future development in an informal setting, hear from key partners, and determine which areas to focus on. For more information about last year’s meeting, please follow this link.

The mission of the “New Europe” Center is to conduct analytical research and implement projects to promote European standards and practices in Ukraine, as well as to maintain support from opinion leaders and EU and NATO officials for Ukraine’s European and Euro-Atlantic prospects.

The “New Europe” Center has set three strategic goals:

• To enhance the effectiveness of Ukraine’s foreign and security policy through the Center’s analytical materials and recommendations
• Effectively and regularly communicating the benefits of Ukraine’s European and Euro-Atlantic choice
• To increase the level of interest among European countries and the United States in supporting Ukraine

You can view the organization’s achievements from last year here.

We invite you to view a photo report (photographer Anna Korbut) from yesterday’s meeting of the CSE Club.

The event was organized as part of the Initiative for the Development of Think Tanks in Ukraine, implemented by the International Renaissance Foundation in partnership with the Open Society Initiative for Europe (OSIFE) with financial support from the Swedish Embassy in Ukraine.

The event took place as part of the “Get Involved!” Civic Engagement Program, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by Pact in Ukraine. This event is the sole responsibility of Pact and the “New Europe” Center and does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) or the U.S. government.