Merz pushes special EU status to bring wartime Ukraine closer to membership
Merz proposes granting Ukraine special status in the EU. (Photo: REUTERS/Nadja Wohlleben)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has proposed granting
Ukraine special “associate member” status in the EU, with expanded rights and
security guarantees before full accession to the European Union, Spiegel
reported on May 21.
In a letter to EU leaders, Merz outlined a model under which
Ukraine would not yet receive full membership or voting rights on all issues,
but would be integrated much more closely into European institutions.
Merz said the proposal reflects Ukraine’s wartime
circumstances and progress in accession talks, and could also help peace
efforts.
In his appeal, Merz stressed that EU enlargement is a
“geopolitical necessity,” but that standard accession procedures take too long.
“So I am convinced that we need new momentum for Ukraine,
the Western Balkan countries and Moldova,” he stressed.
The proposed “associate member” status would provide broader
rights and obligations than those granted to candidate countries under the
standard accession process, including:
- a seat and voting rights for Ukraine at meetings of the
Council of the EU and the European Council, and participation without voting
rights in the work of the European Commission and European Parliament;
- gradual integration into the EU budget;
- the use of Article 42.7 of the EU treaties on mutual defense
and assistance to provide Ukraine with additional security guarantees;
- a seat at the Court of Justice of the EU with the position
of assistant rapporteur, a lower-level judicial post.
At the same time, Merz said the special status could be
restricted if reforms are rolled back or core EU values are violated.
For Moldova and the Western Balkan countries, Merz proposed
speeding up integration. Unlike Ukraine, however, they would fall under a
separate plan for faster accession to the European Union.
Ukraine’s EU accession
On May 11, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said all six
negotiating clusters for Ukraine’s accession to the European Union could be
opened as early as this summer.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly stressed that
Ukraine expects to join the European Union by 2027. He has also rejected the
idea of “symbolic” benefits for Ukraine, saying Kyiv deserves full EU
membership.
At the same time, several countries have opposed “shortcuts”
to accession, including Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy, as well as
Poland and Hungary. They stress that a candidate country must meet strict
criteria, including on the rule of law and the fight against corruption.
On March 24, European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos
said Ukraine
would not be able to become an EU member in 2027.
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