The Eastern Partnership in Times of the Migrant and Refugee Crisis in the European Union.

The objective of this article is twofold, i.e. to discuss the migrant and refugee crisis in Europe/the EU as a key frame of reference for further considerations and to analyse what are, so far, the consequences of this crisis for the Eastern Partnership (EaP) and the EU cooperation with the EaP countries. Thus, the paper consists of two main parts. It starts with a brief overview of the migration and asylum landscape in Europe/the EU in times of the so-called 'crisis' of 2014+, some discussions about what kind of crisis we are talking about and what the crisis means in different contexts. This is followed by a general picture of the EU response to the migrant and refugee crisis in order to show where we are in mid-2017. The second part of the paper deals with the issue of the Eastern Partnership - the current state of play is presented and factors influencing this EU political initiative are highlighted in particular in the context of the migrant and refugee crisis in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]