EU member countries remain divided over the feasibility of speeding up Ukraine's accession to the bloc, which makes its membership unlikely in the near future, the Euractiv news website reported on Tuesday, citing sources
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st January, 2023) EU member countries remain divided over the feasibility of speeding up Ukraine's accession to the bloc, which makes its membership unlikely in the near future, the Euractiv news website reported on Tuesday, citing sources.
The news website, which covers EU news, cited a draft communique of consultations between EU and Ukrainian diplomats, which will take place later this week.
Despite the fact that the document praises the "considerable progress" made by Ukraine and says that "the future of Ukraine and its citizens lies within the European Union" while underscoring the bloc's determination to "support Ukraine's further European integration," not all member states are happy with the phrasing of the communique, Euractiv said.
The media specified that Poland and the Baltic states had advocated a more positive wording that could suggest Ukraine's accession to the EU may be sped up.
"What we expect from the summit is encouragement for Ukraine and a clear assessment of the progress they have made. Although it's just a statement, words matter, which is why we are pushing for a more encouraging version of the text," a diplomat from an Eastern European country told Euractiv.
Larger member states, however, do not wish for Kiev's early accession to the bloc, according to the report.
"A large number of large member states will not accept too positive language - not in the least because the agreed language is hardly a month old, so no one's ready to reopen a difficult discussion that we've only just concluded," another diplomat from the EU told the news outlet.
Several EU diplomats added that "pushback" can be "expected from France, Germany, Spain, Netherlands, Portugal, Denmark and Belgium," as cited in the report. They may not accept language that appears to condone "pre-empting the normal steps in the accession process," since the formal assessment of Kiev's progress has not been made yet, they specified.
On Monday, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told Politico that Ukraine hoped to join the EU within the next two years. The newspaper said few in the bloc consider this plan realistic.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed an application for Ukraine's accession to the EU on February 28, 2022, four days after Russia launched its special military operation. On June 23, EU heads of state approved candidate status for Ukraine and Moldova. To start accession talks, the countries need to fulfill a number of conditions, including reforms.
