Brussels – It was truly a “Mega Monday” for Ukraine and the wider EU enlargement process, alongside the parallel progress made by Moldova and Montenegro. As Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos put it, “we have all waited for this moment for a long time”, as the EU institutions are not doing “any favours, we are delivering on what Ukraine has earned”.
Following the opening of Cluster 1 – ‘Fundamentals’ at the second Accession Conference with Ukraine on 15 June, Commissioner Kos appeared visibly relieved. The “single biggest step” towards Ukraine’s EU membership since the opening of accession negotiations in December 2023 was taken in Luxembourg two and a half years later, and “this time no one had to leave the room for a coffee break,” she said, implicitly referring to former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán‘s attempts to obstruct Kyiv’s accession path.
While “recognising the reform progress Ukraine has made over the past years,” Commissioner Kos recalled that the 27 member states have now set out a “to-do list” for Ukraine to press ahead with reforms in the “most fundamental areas” of our Union.
This first group of negotiating chapters covers the rule of law and fundamental rights, the functioning of democratic institutions, covers economic criteria, and public administration reform. It is composed of five chapters – Chapter 23 (Judiciary and Fundamental Rights), 24 (Justice, Freedom and Security), 5 (Public Procurement), 18 (Statistics), and 32 (Financial Control) – and, once it is opened, the other five clusters can follow.
“For us, this is really a Rubicon to moving ahead towards a successful conclusion,” the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine, Taras Kachka, stressed following the crucial Accession Conference. He reiterated that the government in Kyiv is committed to completing all the accession process “by the end of 2027,” although he admitted that the average time for implementing legislation “is two years.” This means that “we want to do it as soon as possible, but we need several months, maybe years.”
In any case, he added, the opening of the first cluster of negotiating chapters “will speed up the legislative work,” with the accession negotiations helping the Ukrainian government with structural reforms that need to be implemented “in very difficult circumstances”, namely during the Russian invasion and the drone attacks against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure. The goal of closing all 33 chapters “is particularly important for Ukraine – the whole society believes that joining the EU is the formalisation of our long-standing dream,” Deputy Prime Minister Kachka made clear.
The long-awaited breakthrough began on 3 June, when Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced a “comprehensive agreement” with the Ukrainian counterpart on expanding the rights of the Hungarian minority in the Transcarpathia region. This was considered the essential condition for lifting Budapest’s veto on the opening of accession talks with Kyiv. On the same day, the 27 EU ambassadors initiated the process for the formal opening of the first group of negotiating chapters. Following a “broad support” for the Presidency’s proposal on the draft the EU common position, the fulfilment of opening benchmarks for Cluster 1 – ‘Fundamentals’ was approved on 12 June.
“For us, this is a big achievement,” Deputy Prime Minister Kachka said, referring to the “unified action plan on national minorities that covers the interests of all member states.” He stressed that dialogue will continue with “all our neighbours,” not only Hungary, as Kyiv’s “horizontal policy framework” covers “all the needs and interests of national minority communities” on Ukrainian soil. “We do not have any specific policy for any particular national minority,” he added.
Speaking on behalf of the rotating Presidency of the Council, the Deputy Minister for European Affairs of Cyprus, Marilena Raouna, welcomed the “long-awaited milestone” in Ukraine’s EU accession process and stressed the commitment of the Cyprus Presidency to a “credible, fair and merit-based” enlargement policy, with progress guided by “the fulfilment of the agreed criteria.” She also stressed that Nicosia “truly understands that the EU is the best guarantee” for Ukraine’s security, with Cyprus bringing to Brussels “a unique insight into the devastating consequences of violations of territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence.”
The state of EU–Ukraine relations
Just four days after the start of Russia’s war of aggression, on 28 February 2022, Ukraine submitted its application for EU membership. On 23 June 2022, the European Council endorsed the European Commission’s recommendation to grant Kyiv candidate status.
At the European Council meeting on 14 December 2023, EU leaders gave the green light to open accession negotiations. Following the Council’s approval of the negotiating frameworks, the first intergovernmental conference was held on 25 June 2024 in Luxembourg.
With Viktor Orbán‘s Hungary vetoing the start of Ukraine’s EU accession negotiations, the process stalled for two years. On 17 March 2026, technical guidance was provided by the Commission to continue work on EU reforms across all six negotiating clusters, before the change of power in Budapest brought a new momentum. The new government, led by Péter Magyar, reached an agreement with Kyiv on the rights of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine, paving the way for the opening of Cluster 1 – ‘Fundamentals’.
