Half of Ukraine's EU accession clusters already screened, says bloc
Source: Guillaume Mercier, spokesperson for the European Commission, at the request of a European Pravda correspondent
Details: Mercier stated that as part of the EU-Ukraine accession negotiations, the European Commission's screening report on Cluster 1 is complete. Reports on Clusters 2 and 6 will be submitted to the EU Council by the end of Poland's EU presidency in June, with three additional reports on the remaining clusters expected by the end of 2025, during Denmark's presidency.
"Since the opening of accession negotiations, Ukraine has demonstrated remarkable commitment, moving forward steadily on key reforms, despite war raging. The Commission has delivered the fastest screening process to date – we are over half-way through, and the process should be finalised in autumn 2025," Mercier noted.
"For the opening of negotiations on Cluster 1, the Council is now in the driving seat – and there is a consensus among 26 EU Member States [out of 27] to move ahead to open negotiations on Cluster 1," he said.
In response to a question about Hungary's ongoing blockade of the opening of Cluster 1, Fundamentals, in Ukraine accession talks, and possible ways to overcome the Hungarian veto, the spokesperson emphasised: "The Commission is working with the Polish Presidency to identify solutions".
"We must also address the particular concerns in certain Member States. This is why the Commission has personally invested energy to facilitate discussions between Hungary and Ukraine regarding the position of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine," said Mercier.
He added that "all sides involved need to show good faith and willingness to reach compromises, this is in the EU's DNA".
The European Commission spokesperson also mentioned the screening process for other clusters, which is ongoing in parallel.
"To this day, we have achieved the screening of half of the clusters (Cluster 1 screening report has been submitted to the Council on 16 January 2025; the reports for Cluster 2 and Cluster 6 will reach the Council still during the Polish Presidency; the screening for the remaining Clusters will be finalised and the reports will reach the Council by the end of 2025, during the Danish Presidency)," he told European Pravda.
He also explained that the screening process itself "will continue until autumn 2025".
"Given the speed of the screening, the Commission is of the opinion that all clusters could be open this year, pending the approval from the Member States," Mercier concluded.
Background:
Earlier, sources told European Pravda that Moldova could open the first cluster in negotiations with the EU before Ukraine.
In particular, Moldova will have completed the screening of four of the six clusters by the end of May 2025.
As for Ukraine, Budapest has blocked the opening of the first negotiating cluster. Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has publicly voted against Ukraine's membership in the EU in a Hungarian poll.
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