Lithuania supports full EU membership for Ukraine – finance minister

Lithuanian Finance Minister Kristupas Vaitiekunas said this in an interview with Ukrinform.

"Lithuania stands for the idea of Ukraine's full integration into the EU before 2030, or even sooner. It has to be fully integrated, a real member of the EU," the minister said.

Expressing readiness to support, among other things, the idea of phased accession – an idea that is reportedly being discussed in the European Commission to speed up Ukraine's European integration – he said that such an option carries certain risks.

"We don't think that Ukraine should be left on that first intermediary step and never be able to make the second step for full membership," Vaitiekunas said. "So this is the risk, and, if we avoid that risk, we will support this intermediary step. But still, the ultimate goal is Ukraine's full membership of the EU."

Ukrinform reported earlier, citing the Financial Times, that Brussels is preparing proposals to scrap the EU accession system used since the Cold War and replace it with a two-tier model that could accelerate Ukraine's entry but with limited powers at the first stage.

According to senior officials involved in the talks, the reform plan being discussed in the European Commission, although still preliminary, is already causing concern among EU capitals worried about a simplified enlargement approach with far-reaching consequences for the bloc.

Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that any peace agreement should clearly specify a date for Ukraine's accession to the European Union, as EU membership is one of the security guarantees.

After a videoconference of European leaders in December, at which support for Ukraine was discussed, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stressed the importance of Ukraine's EU accession as a guarantee of peace.