During the European Council summit scheduled for June 26–27, the leaders of the European Union member states plan to adopt a joint declaration emphasizing Ukraine’s substantial progress on the path to European integration. The document will reflect Kyiv’s readiness to open negotiation clusters, but will not be signed by Hungary, reports Baltimore Chronicle with reference to a high-ranking EU official.
According to the source, the European Council will approve a declaration containing strong messages of support for Ukraine’s EU aspirations. European Council President António Costa hopes that the summit’s conclusions will clearly affirm Ukraine’s preparedness to open negotiation clusters. However, the official stated that the document is expected to bear only 26 signatures out of the 27 EU member states.
Hungary is anticipated to withhold its endorsement of the final document, despite its political significance. The official reminded that, under the current EU enlargement procedures, unanimous support from all member states is required at every stage of a candidate country’s advancement.
Nevertheless, even without Hungary’s backing, Ukraine may continue its membership negotiations on an informal basis. The EU representative stressed that a powerful message from the other 26 members could still provide a mandate to proceed with further work.
He noted that the ideal outcome would be formal approval by all 27 countries, which would allow Ukraine to officially move forward and open negotiation clusters. However, the current political context must be taken into account.
Earlier we wrote that European Commission proposes adding Ukraine to EU roaming zone by 2026.