The First Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Oleksandr Korniienko took part in high-level meetings within the first visit to Ukraine by the Working Party on Enlargement and Countries Negotiating Accession to the EU which took place on Tuesday, May 5.
As part of the visit, representatives of the EU member states held meetings with representatives of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, central executive authorities, anti-corruption bodies, and local society.
Participants of the meetings discussed the functioning of Ukraine's state authorities amid russian full-scale armed aggression and the progress of reforms that are being implemented despite the war. Particular attention was paid to Ukraine's vision of its path towards EU membership and the next steps within the negotiation process, in particular, expectations regarding the opening of negotiation clusters for Ukraine in 2026.
Nektaria Kakoutsi, Head of the Working Party on Enlargement and Countries Negotiating Accession to the EU (COELA) during the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EU, highlighted Ukraine’s progress on its path towards membership in the European Union.
“This is a merit-based process, and Ukraine is delivering results even amid a full-scale war. We value this commitment to reforms and are determined to move forward as swiftly as possible, taking into account the progress achieved and the realities of today. Ukraine is part of the European political and security space, and our common task is to ensure further progress along this path,” she stressed.
Following the meeting, Oleksandr Korniienko, First Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and member of the Interagency Working Group, stressed: "Today, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is almost entirely focused on reforms, which are necessary for EU accession and, despite the war, continues to work systematically and adopt important decisions. Everyreform is an even greater challenge, but we are ready to move forward together with our partners. We will stay this course until the very end — towards EU membership and Ukraine’s victory.”
The First Deputy Speaker expressed his gratitude to the member states of the EU for supporting Ukraine on its path towards EU membership and for defending democratic values against challenges posed by authoritarian regimes.
Oleksandr Korniienko assured representatives of the EU Council’s Working Group on Enlargement of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine’s unwavering commitment to the path of European integration and to continuing systematic work on the necessary reforms, even in the context of the war.
Within the framework of the visit, members of COELA also held a separate meeting with the heads of parliamentary factions. The event took place in the Parliament building under the chairmanship of Oleksandr Korniienko, First Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
The First Deputy Speaker stressed that Ukraine’s European integration is a unifying objective for the entire Parliament, bringing together both the majority and opposition factions. He highlighted the joint efforts of the Verkhovna Rada, the Government, and international partners in implementing the reforms necessary for EU accession, in particular regarding legislative approximation and advancement of the negotiation process.
He also expressed expectations for the opening of negotiations under the first clusters and for further progress in European integration, while thanking the European Union for its financial, sanctions, and defence support for Ukraine in the context of ongoing russian aggression.
Oleksandr Korniienko expressed his confidence that Ukraine's membership in the EU is one of the key guarantees of long-term security of Europe.
“Our state remains committed to advancing reforms in the areas of the rule of law and anti-corruption policy, which are central elements of our roadmaps within Cluster 1 ‘Fundamentals’ of the accession negotiations. We are grateful to the European Union side for providing benchmark indicators for all six negotiation clusters,” he noted.
In particular, Ukraine needs to address key challenges in fulfilling the EU accession requirements under the following negotiation chapters:
• Chapter 23 “Judiciary and Fundamental Rights” (Cluster 1);
• Chapter 24 “Justice, Freedom and Security” (Cluster 1);
• Chapter 11 “Agriculture and Rural Development” (Cluster 5);
• Chapter 12 “Food Safety, Veterinary and Phytosanitary Policy” (Cluster 5);
• Chapter 14 “Transport Policy” (Cluster 4);
• Chapter 15 “Energy” (Cluster 4);
• Chapter 30 “External Relations” (Cluster 6);
• Chapter 31 “Foreign, Security and Defence Policy” (Cluster 6).
“We are ready and continue to work towards fulfilling the necessary tasks to achieve the stated goals,” assured Oleksandr Korniienko.
The visit of the Council of the European Union Working Party on Enlargement (COELA) to Kyiv took place at the initiative of the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the European Union and at the invitation of Taras Kachka, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine.
“We see a real opportunity to reach consensus on Ukraine’s further progress towards membership and are sincerely grateful to the member states for their deep engagement in the process. This joint work allows us to view the opening of negotiation clusters as the completion of the preparatory stage rather than its beginning. Ukraine approaches this stage with a clear plan for implementing the EU acquis and with an ambitious yet realistic vision — the timely and substantive fulfilment of relevant commitments and the successful closure of negotiation chapters.
We fully understand the scale of the work ahead and have organised the implementation process in the most structured way possible together with the Parliament, the Government, and other stakeholders. Today, our shared task is not to lose the momentum that has been built, but to transform it into concrete decisions and tangible results in the near future,” stated Chief Negotiator Taras Kachka.