Ukraine is urging Brussels to open all six negotiation clusters for its EU accession already in June, ahead of the previously indicated July timeline, warning that the country is already falling behind its planned accession schedule.
This was stated by Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Taras Kachka in an interview with Euronews, according to Ukrinform.
“We believe that all six clusters can be open already in June,” Kachka said.
According to Euronews, the Ukrainian official’s call came after European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos confirmed that the first negotiation cluster could be opened in June during Cyprus’s EU presidency, with the remaining five expected in July under Ireland’s presidency.
The negotiation clusters cover key reform areas required for EU alignment, ranging from the rule of law to judicial reform. Each set of criteria must be fulfilled by candidate countries, and final approval requires unanimous agreement from all 27 EU member states.
