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The 27 countries of the European Union have unanimously agreed to open a new cluster of accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova, marking another step in their arduous road to membership.
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During a meeting on Friday afternoon, ambassadors endorsed their common position to unblock cluster six, which covers external relations. The news was confirmed by Ireland, the country that currenlty holds the EU Council’s rotating presidency.
The formal ceremonies will take place separately on 14 July in Brussels.
Friday’s decision builds on the momentum generated by Hungary’s change of government, which ended two years of obstruction of Ukraine’s accession process.
Hungary’s new prime minister, Péter Magyar, lifted the contentious veto in early June, paving the way for the opening of cluster one, known as fundamentals.
Cluster six was widely considered the easiest follow-up after the breakthrough due to its limited scope.
The decision leaves four clusters still pending: cluster two (internal market), cluster three (competitiveness and inclusive growth), cluster four (green agenda and sustainable connectivity), and cluster five (resources, agriculture and cohesion).
The European Commission considers both Ukraine and Moldova to be technically ready to open all of them, which means it is up to politics to determine the next steps.
Kyiv has publicly pushed to advance all steps before the summer break, a goal shared by the Commission and a majority of member states.
“It’s important that we keep the momentum up,” a diplomat said.
But Magyar has expressed strong reservations about moving at such a pace, arguing it would be tantamount to “fast-tracked accession” and undermine membership talks with the Western Balkans, which have been on the waiting line for much longer.
It is now virtually guaranteed that the July target will not be met and the remaining clusters will be tackled one by one from September onwards.
Once a cluster is unblocked, the candidate begins to negotiate its thematic chapters individually.
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