Corruption Remains the Main Obstacle to Ukraine's Accession to the EU — FT
The European Union is not currently ready to admit Ukraine through an expedited procedure, and corruption remains one of the main obstacles to full membership.
According to the Financial Times, officials in Brussels believe that Ukraine must continue its reforms and step up its fight against corruption risks before making further progress toward EU accession.
The Problem of Corruption and the Challenges of Enlargement
According to the publication, the European Union acknowledges that without Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine would not have been granted official candidate status at all.
Concerns regarding the independence of the judicial system and the rule of law remain high.
“You can’t admit a country with a population of 40 million that ranks 104th on the global corruption index into the EU. That would be a mockery of the entire project,” the publication quotes a high-ranking EU diplomat as saying.
At the same time, Brussels understands that Kyiv cannot be left to fend for itself, and the tentative goal of accession by 2027 was more of a “cry for help” from the Ukrainian authorities than a realistic deadline.
EU Enlargement as a Security Factor
Since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, the EU’s enlargement policy has shifted from an economic to a security focus. Member states are eager to have a strong and battle-hardened Ukrainian military on their side.
However, it is not only the situation in Ukraine that is holding up enlargement. The European Union itself has proven to be internally unprepared to accept new members.
To address this issue, France and Germany are proposing a “phased integration” model, which provides for gradual access to the single market and EU programs as reforms are implemented, rather than immediate full membership.
What Led Up to This
The EU enlargement process has effectively been on hold for the past decade, following Croatia’s accession in 2013. The catalyst for resuming negotiations was Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
In addition to Ukraine and Moldova, the countries of the Western Balkans, notably Montenegro and Albania, are in line for accession.
Currently, Montenegro has made the most progress in meeting Brussels’ requirements and expects to conclude technical negotiations in the near future.
This was reported with reference to the Financial Times.
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