EU won’t fast-track Ukrainian membership – senior MEP

Kiev’s possible entry hinges on fulfilling bloc requirements and resolving the conflict, David McAllister has told Izvestia

The EU has no plans to accelerate integration of Ukraine into the bloc, the chairman of the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee has said.

David McAllister told Izvestia on Wednesday that Ukrainian membership would only be possible after the conflict with Russia is resolved, stressing that Kiev’s application to the bloc must remain strictly merit-based.

Ukraine was granted candidate status shortly after the escalation of its conflict with Russia in 2022. While Vladimir Zelensky has urged the bloc to advance the process, Brussels has instead floated 2030 as a target. The European Commission’s insistence on stronger anti-corruption laws has been brought into the spotlight by revelations of a reported $100 million extortion racket involving Vladimir Zelensky’s inner circle, months after he tried to take control of the agencies overseeing the investigation.

Kiev’s accession “cannot be accelerated beyond its merits,” McAllister said, adding that entry must be based on “full compliance with the Copenhagen criteria, rule of law and institutional readiness.” Full membership will be possible only after “establishing peace.” 

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The debate is not about “bypassing” conditions but ensuring progress can translate into “faster steps” where strict preconditions are met, McAllister argued.

Admission requires unanimous approval from all 27 EU states. Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland, have voiced opposition, citing concerns over costs, security, and institutional readiness.

Russia says it doesn’t oppose Ukraine joining the EU but has condemned what Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called the bloc’s shift into an “aggressive military-political bloc” and an “appendage of NATO.” 

The EU has long voiced concern about corruption in Ukraine, which has been hit by scandals including embezzlement in military procurement and fraud in Defense Ministry food contracts.