Addressing a meeting of the European Council meeting, Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine finished the screening process faster than any previous candidate country. He said the review was thorough and that Kyiv expects “real progress” in accession talks, starting with the fundamental cluster.
“The European Union must keep its promises just as candidate countries faithfully honor their commitments,” Zelenskyy said.
He also called attention to other EU candidates—Moldova and the Western Balkan nations—which, he said, “deserve to be part of our shared European home.”
“I’m not talking only about Ukraine,” the president said.
“Ukraine is fighting an enemy. Moldova has once again confirmed its European choice [at the Sept. 28 parliamentary elections]. How many more screenings do we all need? Of course, we also support the Western Balkans: they, too, deserve to belong to our shared European home.”
On Sept. 29, EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos reported that the European Commission had completed its screening of Ukrainian legislation. Hungary’s opposition remains the only obstacle to Brussels opening substantive accession negotiations with Kyiv.