Publication

This paper argues that civil society should be a more important priority of democracy promotion in the EU Eastern neighborhood. The paper calls for a strategic and differentiated approach tailored to the level of democratization in the target country. The author focuses on three different countries in Eastern Europe and examines the bureaucratic obstacles hindering EU support for civil society. She notes that even if the rules governing the support of civil society actors were substantially reformed, it would still be difficult for the European Commission to work extensively with NGOs in foreign countries for political as well as institutional reasons. Hence, the EU should create new mechanisms of democracy assistance.