European Commission: EU accession in 2027 is benchmark for Kyiv, not Brussels

This was stated at a briefing in Brussels by the Commission's chief spokesperson Paula Pinho, according to a correspondent from Ukrinform.

"We well noted President Zelensky's announcement and commitment. We know well how committed he is to this enlargement process and to the negotiations," Pinho said in response to a question about whether the European Commission shares the assessment of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Ukraine will be technically ready within days to open all six negotiation clusters for EU accession.

Commission spokesperson Markus Lammert reiterated the position that the European Commission considers Ukraine ready to open all six clusters.

"Ukraine belongs to the European family, and the Commission remains firmly committed to advancing Ukraine's accession to the European Union and to supporting the swift progress of key reforms. Despite Russia's unrelenting war of aggression, Ukraine also remains strongly committed to its EU accession path, having successfully completed the screening process and advanced on key reforms. This is clearly outlined in our latest enlargement report, and this is why we welcome the completion of the bilateral screening in record time and recall the Commission’s assessment that all six clusters are now ready to be opened," he said.

He added that the decision now lies with the Member States.

"We stand ready to support Ukraine on its EU path," he emphasized.

Responding to a question about whether the EU is prepared to support the idea of setting a date for Ukraine's accession, including 2027, as part of a potential peace agreement, Pinho recalled that during her most recent visit to Ukraine, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen acknowledged the urgency of EU membership for Ukraine. At the same time, she stressed that the merit-based accession principle does not allow the EU to set dates unilaterally.

"We cannot have this as our reference. It is the President of Ukraine's benchmark rather than ours," she said.

"We are committed, on our side, to do all we can to bring Ukraine to move on in this process, because has really been doing formidable work under extremely challenging conditions."

She emphasized that a country at war "needs to be encouraged."

As previously reported, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that by 2027 Ukraine will be technically ready for EU membership, although some EU members are still blocking the opening of negotiation clusters. He added that within days Ukraine will be technically ready to open all six clusters.

In this context, he stressed the need to include a fixed date for Ukraine's EU accession in a peace plan currently consisting of 20 points.

As reported, negotiations on the accession of new EU member states are divided into 35 chapters, 33 of which are grouped into six thematic clusters that are opened sequentially. For each chapter, the European Commission first conducts an official screening of Ukraine's legislation for compliance with EU law.

Hungary, using the principle of unanimity in EU enlargement decisions, is blocking the start of accession negotiations.