Ukraine continues to hope for rapid EU accession, and the list of supporters is getting longer and longer. But the problem of tough procedures remains. Does French President Macron know the solution?
Two things can be noted on Monday evening. Firstly, Germany and France are firmly on Ukraine’s side. Secondly, the Ukrainian President is hoping for more.
But one by one.
It was an iconic day in many ways. First, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) Emmanuel Macron. It was the French President’s first trip abroad since his re-election, and the message of the visit was appropriate: the Franco-German friendship is in no way inferior to the glorious weather in Berlin. Scholz also made his first trip as chancellor to the French capital. There are five months between the two inaugural visits, some would even say a “turn of the tide”. Either way, the world has changed since then.
If the Ukrainian President were in charge of the Chancellor’s appointment calendar, Scholz would have spent May 9 in Ukraine. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of course, not without ulterior motives: Russia celebrated “Victory Day” over Nazi Germany, President Vladimir Putin his war against Ukraine. Contrary to all speculation that the Franco-German team could set off to Kyiv together, Macron and Scholz made their way to the Brandenburg Gate, which was illuminated in the Ukrainian national colors (like the Eiffel Tower in Paris, by the way).
Is there anything else? Oh yes, “Europe Day” was also celebrated, so to speak, the . As I said, it was a symbolic day. And that had suitable news ready.
“We must never make empty promises again”
“Today we took another step on our way to the European Union, an important and not only formal one,” he said in his daily video address on Monday evening. His country has submitted the second half of the answers to the questionnaire that every state has to fill out to apply for membership. “It usually takes months, but we did it within weeks,” says Zelenskyj. As early as June he is expecting a positive answer and the status of the accession candidate.
Should Ukraine join the EU? The debate is not new, it has been going on for years. With the Russian war of aggression, however, the question had gained new urgency. Just a few days after the invasion, there has been lively discussion about joining as soon as possible. “Over time, they actually belong to us, they are one of us and we want them in,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Since then, the list of supporters has been growing, most recently Bundestag President Bärbel Bas (SPD) after her visit to the war zone. But the problem remains: It probably won’t happen quickly.
There are several reasons for this, both technical and political. The , a membership in the expedited procedure is practically impossible. “According to the European treaties, any European country that shares the values of the EU can apply for membership”, . “Of course, that also applies to Ukraine.” However, no EU accession procedure is possible quickly. “Depending on the accession country, the procedure is divided into up to 35 chapters. It’s about domestic and economic policy criteria that have to be met for admission. When the conditions are met, the chapters are closed one after the other.”
Accession candidates are introduced to the EU in a lengthy process so that the necessary reforms and adjustments to the EU’s legal framework can be made. For admission, an applicant country must prove itself to be a stable democracy based on the rule of law, but also have a functioning and competitive market economy – to name just a few of those that regulate accession. The Republic of North Macedonia, currently one of five candidate countries, has been waiting since 2005 for accession negotiations to begin.
The debate about Ukraine’s speedy EU membership is therefore raising false expectations. And so on Monday: “We must never make empty promises again.” Although Ukraine belongs “to the house of Europe,” when asked about EU membership, she added: “We don’t know when the step can be taken and how it can be done because they are in a terrible war right now.”
A concession?
French President Macron also dampened expectations. The procedure for joining the EU could take “decades” in Strasbourg before his visit to Berlin.
Instead, he proposed the creation of a “European political community” for Ukraine and other candidate countries. It could “enable a new space for political cooperation, security and cooperation,” said the head of state.
Macron was not yet able to come up with details, but the President seemed to be very impressed by his idea: A confederation of states, that’s probably how it’s intended, which could be built around the EU as a kind of preliminary stage. In any case, Chancellor Scholz later spoke in Berlin of a “very interesting proposal” that Macron had made there.
The EU Commission intends to issue its official statement on Ukraine’s application for EU membership in June. Should Brussels recommend candidate status for Ukraine to the 27 member states – and should all countries agree – the actual accession negotiations could begin.
No matter what the result should be: “We agree that Ukraine belongs to the European family,” said Chancellor Scholz. “We are working on continuing to accompany them on their way to our common Europe.”
Source: Stern
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