Negotiations on EU Accession during War Should Be Divided into Stages – Ukraine's Deputy PM for European Integration

Olha Stefanishyna, the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, does not expect any difficulties during the discussions regarding Ukraine’s accession to the EU during martial law.

The deputy prime minister in an interview with ERR recalled the Association Agreement with the EU, which has been in effect for almost 10 years and was signed when Crimea had already been occupied and the occupation of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts had already begun.

"This agreement applies to all of Ukraine without any exceptions or reservations. And there are special clarifications from the European Commission on how to act on the market of a third country in conditions when part of the territory is not controlled. So there is such a precedent," Stefanishyna said.

The European Union is first of all an economic union, a union of values, and this is what makes it very different from NATO, Stefanishyna added.

"I don't think that the discussion on this topic will be very difficult. I think that it will go in a practical and realistic direction.

But I also believe that the elephant should be eaten one bite at a time, so we need to start negotiations at this stage and close their basic part so that later we can move to a discussion of this level," the deputy prime minister said.

Earlier, Stefanishyna expressed confidence that the assessment of Ukraine's progress on the path to European Union membership in the European Commission's report, which will be published on 8 November, will be positive.

The European Commission intends to present a positive assessment of Ukraine's progress in applying for EU membership on 8 November, but this assessment may contain additional conditions amid the upcoming decision to start accession talks with Kyiv, Reuters reported.