Moldova and Ukraine have made significant progress towards joining the European Union, according to the European Commission, which presented its reports and communication on EU enlargement on Tuesday 4 November (see EUROPE 13515/3). On the other hand, negotiations with Georgia are at a standstill and this country is moving further and further away from its EU path, according to the institution.
In a speech (https://aeur.eu/f/ja6 ) to the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, Marta Kos, Commissioner for Enlargement, stressed that “significant progress” had been made towards EU membership by Moldova and Ukraine (as well as Montenegro and Albania – see other news).
“This shows that the reforms pay off”, said Ms Kos. She recalled that the EU had also stepped up gradual integration, notably through the ‘Ukraine Facility’ and the ‘Growth Plans’ for the Western Balkans and Moldova.
“We need to think more broadly about our work with aspiring Members and grant participation in various policies and programmes before EU membership, provided they meet the conditions”, she added.
Success has already been achieved in a number of important areas, such as the integration of energy markets. The ‘energy resilience packages’ signed with Ukraine and Moldova are a good example of this: they provide for their integration into the EU energy market by 2027.
Ms Kos pointed out that the candidates had set themselves ambitious targets: Moldova and Ukraine are aiming for accession in 2028. “For me, ambitions are more important than years and the Commission is supporting them. For this year, I can say that these four candidates have matched their ambitions with concrete actions”, she stressed.
Ms Kos said that Moldova had stronger institutions capable of defending democracy, particularly “in the context of Russian interference".
The President of the European Council, António Costa, said on Tuesday that Moldova and Ukraine had made “impressive progress”. Ukraine, a country at war, and Moldova, facing repeated attacks on its democracy and sovereignty, “have completed the Commission’s examination of the acquis communautaire in the space of a year, and at record speed”, according to Mr Costa.
The screening process with Moldova and Ukraine has now been completed, and the Commission is continuing its work to enable the EU Council to open all clusters with these two countries by November, Ms Kos reiterated.
Hungarian veto. The accession negotiations with the candidate countries are divided into clusters, and the Commission estimates that all of them could be opened by the end of the year for Ukraine and Moldova (see EUROPE 13734/25). All that remains is to convince Hungary, which is opposed to Ukraine joining the EU. Any decision to open a cluster must be taken unanimously by the EU Council.
Speaking to MEPs, Ms Kos said that it was not necessary for all 150 or so stages of the accession process to be decided unanimously. In her view, this unanimity should only be required when candidate country status is granted and at the end of the accession process. “One of the solutions, which could now enable the opening of cluster one or all the clusters for Ukraine and Moldova, would be that we would get a Commission mandate from the Council so that we can go on at the working level. I hope that we will be able, together with the [Danish] presidency, to reach this agreement, that on the working level, we can go on working cluster by cluster. (...) And when all the conditions are met, then we will also open [the clusters] officially”, she concluded.
Ukraine. Faced with the challenges posed by Russia’s war of aggression, Ukraine has demonstrated its commitment to its European path, making progress on key reforms, said Commissioner Kos. The steps already taken “are laying the foundations for recovery and opening space for greater private sector involvement. It will be essential to sustain this momentum and prevent any risk of backsliding, in particular on anti-corruption”, according to the Commission. The country report shows that Ukraine “has a certain level of preparedness in the fight against corruption. Limited progress has been made”. Overall, these developments raise doubts about Ukraine’s commitment to the fight against corruption, according to the report.
Moldova. According to Ms Kos, Moldova has made steady progress towards accession and has strengthened its cooperation with the EU despite persistent hybrid threats and attempts to destabilise the country. The Commission communication notes that concrete measures have been taken to gradually integrate Moldova into key sectors of the single market, notably under the ‘Roam like at home’ initiative, effective starting the 1st January 2026.
Georgia. Kaja Kallas, the High Representative of the Union, pointed out that the Commission had proposed sanctioning those responsible in Georgia who use violence against peace demonstrators, but not all the Member States yet support this approach.
“Georgia has no viable path to the EU at this stage unless conditions change dramatically”, stressed Ms Kallas.
Ms Kos said that the current government was “distancing” Georgia from the European Union. Ms Kos told MEPs that “in Georgia, the situation has sharply deteriorated, with serious democratic backsliding”. The Commission noted “a rapid erosion of the Rule of law and severe restrictions on fundamental rights”. The Georgian authorities urgently need to change course in order to respond to their citizens’ demand for a European future, summed up Ms Kos. “The Commission considers Georgia a candidate country in name only”, said Ms Kos.
In December 2024, the European Council deplored the Georgian government’s decision to suspend the EU accession process until 2028. “The systemic and systematic repressive actions of the authorities, including legislation curtailing civic space and fundamental rights, the functioning of independent media and targeting LGBTIQ persons, excessive use of force in full impunity by the law enforcement authorities and hostile rhetoric against the EU, are in stark contrast with EU values and the actions expected from an EU candidate country”, reads the Commission’s communication. The Commission regrets that no steps have been taken by the authorities to reverse the course of action and bring the country back on its path towards European integration. The imprisonment of leading opposition figures, combined with the announcement by the ruling party of its intention to ban certain opposition parties and individuals associated with them, “constitutes a direct attack against democratic pluralism”, according to the communication.
Link to the communication: https://aeur.eu/f/ja3
Report on Ukraine: https://aeur.eu/f/ja4
Report on Moldova: https://aeur.eu/f/ja7
Report on Georgia: https://aeur.eu/f/ja8 (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)