Ukraine’s EU accession: how Europe plans to bypass Hungary’s veto

The European Union plans to begin the technical part of Ukraine and Moldova’s accession to the bloc despite Hungary’s veto, which is slowing down the progress of the negotiations.

This was reported by Ukrinform with reference to the Financial Times article.

As noted, Ukraine and Moldova officially began negotiations on EU membership in 2024. Since then, Hungary has opposed the opening of “clusters” that unify the legislation of countries in various areas with the laws of the European Union.

According to the publication’s sources, in order to circumvent Budapest’s veto, the European Commission has proposed to slightly change its own rules. In particular, it is about starting technical work in some “clusters” despite the lack of a decision to start negotiations.

Appropriate actions will allow Ukraine and Moldova to carry out reforms and institutional training, and to harmonize the regulatory framework.

However, once Hungary lifts its veto, the process can be accelerated.

“Theoretically, it will be possible to open and close the cluster on the same day,” the official assured.

However, there are risks. The Financial Times notes that without public recognition, implementing painful reforms could prove difficult for Kyiv and Chisinau.

European leaders are scheduled to discuss the plan on Wednesday, October 1, during a meeting in Copenhagen.

At the same time, Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration Taras Kachka hopes that Ukraine will be able to convince Hungary to lift the veto and move on to negotiations.

“But in the meantime, we have and greatly appreciate the offer from EU institutions and other member states to continue technical work on clusters,” he emphasized.

Recall, the European Parliament adopted a resolution setting out a list of requirements for Ukraine in the context of further European integration . The document is based on the European Commission’s assessments for 2023 and 2024, but also takes into account events in mid-2025.

Previously, Ukraine fulfilled all conditions for protecting the rights of national minorities , which paves the way for the start of negotiations on accession to the European Union.

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