Pre-emptive distortion of facts: the Eastern Partnership Summit

On Friday this week the Eastern Partnership summit will take place in Brussels between the EU and Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. In the build up, we have seen plenty of pre-emptive distortion concerning the facts about the EU's cooperation with its Eastern Partners.

For example, there is the claim that the new agreement between Armenia and the EU, half of which focuses on building a stronger economy, will not in fact have any affect on the economy. The EU was accused of restricting Georgian products, whereas in fact Georgiaenjoys a zero customs duty policy on the import of goods into EU countries, save for one product: garlic. It was also claimed that only Europe benefits from the agreement with Georgia, whereas actually trade relations between the EU and its partner countries are mutually beneficial.