Time for accession talks: the EU must not use Orbán’s veto to punish Ukraine

This article is an Editorial. That means it is published on behalf of the entire editorial team and reflects the collective position of all European Pravda journalists. We reserve this format for truly exceptional cases. This piece is also addressed to the governments of EU member states, which are now at a crossroads in defining their policy on Ukraine.

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Over the past month and a half, Ukraine’s path towards EU membership has seen dramatic changes, leaving a handful of winners (both inside and outside the EU) and a far greater number who have lost ground. Ukrainians have, without a doubt, ended up among the latter group.

Indeed, up until early July, the European Commission had continued to emphasise that Ukraine would open all the clusters in the accession talks by the end of 2025 and Hungary’s veto would not stand in the way. Brussels made no secret of the fact that it was working on several Plan B options to get round the Hungarian veto, because the start of negotiations was a matter of exceptional importance.

Since mid-July, all such talk has evaporated.

The reason for Brussels’ loss of ambition is well known. Trust in Ukraine was badly damaged by Kyiv’s attempt to undermine its anti-corruption institutions. And although the Ukrainian authorities were quick to repeal the relevant laws, this only stopped the relationship from collapsing; it did not restore the previous level of trust.

Given this situation, the temptation for the European Union is to choose the simplest strategy: to refrain from making any decisions on Ukraine’s path towards EU membership for some time – not to rush, to observe how reforms were going and wait until the Ukrainian government had done enough to rebuild trust. This would also enable them not to worry about Hungary’s veto, which isn’t going anywhere.

But if this strategy prevails, it will be a huge mistake for Europe.

We are certain that, its present passivity notwithstanding, the EU cares about Ukraine.

But there is no better way to push forward European reforms in Ukraine than to open the first negotiation clusters for Ukraine (and Moldova alongside it). And conversely, there is no worse option for Ukraine’s European future than for the EU to use recent events as a pretext for a pause in its rapprochement with Kyiv.

A pause that would only be perceived as punishment for Ukraine.

Hungary’s blockade may be a convenient explanation for the EU’s shift of position, but it’s an unconvincing one. Viktor…