Experiencing the European Union in the South Caucasus and Eastern Europe

Abstract

The Eastern periphery of the European Union is a place Russia calls home, and it is where the EU is present on many levels through the Eastern Partnership. This article aims to contribute to the academic de- bate on European identity and identification with Europe by showing that ‘experiencing Europe’ in the Eastern Partnership countries means experiencing the EU both as a normative and geopolitical actor, but also experiencing the fear of losing the ‘traditional way of life’ and customs. This paper shows that the EU is not perceived in the same way in the different Eastern Partnership states, rather in many nuances of percep- tions by the citizens of those respective countries. These differences do not derive from geographical demarcations of the EaP, i.e. the new Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus, but relate to local circumstances and identities. Based on the theoretical framework and research, the article explains that the EU’s normative power is sometimes channelled by the EU to promote its geopolitical interest in the region. The main research methods used are process tracing, thematic analysis of interviews and questionnaires conducted with young people from several EaP countries, and of surveys conducted by internationally recognised entities. Anoth- er method used is content analysis of the documents issued by Euronest and by the European Commission. By applying these methods, the ar- ticle shows that although the Eastern Partnership countries are under the same umbrella, the citizens within them perceive the EU differently from country to country.