The key facts

  • Strack-Zimmermann: the war must end and corruption must be eradicated
  • She could not name a specific date for Ukraine's EU accession
  • Earlier, European Commissioner Marta Kos called naming a date 'irresponsible'

Conditions named in the European Parliament

The chair of the European Parliament's defense committee Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, in an interview with Ukrinform listed what Ukraine needs to join the European Union. According to her, first of all the war must end, since we are talking about a country in a state of conflict with Russia. In addition, Ukraine needs to resolve its internal problems. She could not name a specific date for accession, but noted that everyone is interested in Ukraine becoming part of the EU, including for security reasons.

The demand on corruption and the European Commission's position

The MEP stated outright that a candidate for accession 'must also ensure that there is no more corruption in its own country,' and stressed that Kyiv should be required to solve this problem. She also expressed hope to soon see Ukraine in the European Union and NATO.

Why no date is being named

Strack-Zimmermann's statement aligns with the position of the European Commissioner for enlargement, Marta Kos, who previously refused to name Ukraine a date for possible EU accession, emphasizing that doing so would be 'irresponsible.' According to her, the European integration process will move forward only with 'a green light from the member states at every step' — that is, the decision at each stage depends on the consent of the union's member countries, which makes fixing timelines difficult. Thus, both European officials, albeit in different formulations, point to the absence of set timelines while declaring interest in Ukraine's membership.