European Commission Vice-President notes Ukraine's progress in meeting EU membership criteria

She said this in a comment to Radio Liberty.

Jourova's area of responsibility does not include all the criteria required for EU accession, but she sees progress in the European integration of Ukraine and Moldova.

"My portfolio includes justice. I have the fight against organized crime, money laundering, fraud, corruption, and the media sector. Therefore, I am watching with great interest how the European Commission will assess the progress, because there is progress. Whether the progress will be sufficient to move the countries to the next stage, I cannot tell you now," Jourová said.

She also expressed hope that Georgia would also receive EU candidate status.

"The EU has no choice but to have the courage to develop - to grow geographically, politically, to grow because of the need to be stronger and more resilient. So we need, in my opinion, to develop in the direction of Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, yes. But at the same time, we need to insist that these three countries fulfil, again, the commitments that are part of the negotiations," the Vice President of the European Commission said.

She reminded that the EU wants to see how the reforms work.

Ukraine's accession to the EU

Kyiv applied for EU membership on February 28, 2022, at the start of Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine.

On June 23, 2022, Ukraine was granted candidate status for EU membership.

In May, Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that Ukraine should be ready to join the EU in two years – the country expects to receive a political decision to start accession negotiations this year.

During a speech in parliament on Constitution Day, President Zelenskyy proposed five points of the Ukrainian Doctrine for discussion.

According to Espreso's sources, the European Parliament is considering the possibility of starting negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU this fall.

However, on August 17, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna said that Ukraine would not be able to implement all 7 EU recommendations by October, as these are changes that have been implemented over the years.

The next day, Maria Mezentseva, Deputy Head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Ukraine's Integration with the EU, noted that it is necessary to wait for the October report of the European Commission on the implementation of 7 EU recommendations by Ukraine.

On August 28, European Council President Charles Michel said that the European Union should be ready to accept new member states by 2030. The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, expressed support for setting a tentative time frame for new members to join the EU.

On September 8, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said that negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU should begin by the end of this year. According to him, clear European perspective will inspire Ukrainians on the battlefield.

On September 21, the head of the Servant of the People parliamentary faction, Davyd Arakhamia, said that the Ukrainian parliament has passed 99.9% of what is needed to start negotiations on EU membership.