EU Commission: Ukraine made progress on path to EU membership talks

Ukraine made progress in the past months in meeting the European Union's conditions to formally open accession talks, EU Enlargement Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi said on Thursday.

Kiev applied to join the bloc in early 2022, days after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and is currently implementing reforms despite the war, hoping to start negotiations by the end of the year.

Reforms in two out of seven priority areas - judicial governance and media - are now complete, Varhelyi told journalists in Sweden.

Progress in the other fields was "on track" and delivered on time, he said.

The reform of the Constitutional Court is taking shape pending a second reading at the parliament in Kiev, Varhelyi said.

Efforts in the areas of fighting corruption and money laundering, as well as limiting the influence of oligarchs and strengthening the rights of minorities are progressing at a slower pace, he said.

Moldova, which applied for EU membership shortly after Ukraine, has completed reforms in four out of nine priority areas.

Fulfilling the priority criteria is meant to kick-start required reform processes in the candidate countries, which are to be followed with extensive negotiations where aspiring members have to align with EU laws and standards.

The next progress update is to come in October when the commission is expected to assess whether it recommends opening membership talks to EU leaders who are due take a decision in mid-December.

Starting EU accession talks is however not a guarantee for membership. Negotiations with Montenegro started in 2012 but have since stalled.