24 June 2025, 16:20
Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze emphasized that despite the war, Ukraine continues its reforms to follow the European path.
«This path of Ukraine is based on significant sacrifices, deep values, and genuine commitment. Therefore, we hope that it is not only about the readiness and willingness of candidate countries. It is also about the European Union itself being ready to expand. The question is not whether this will happen, but how—and whether the EU is prepared for enlargement,» said the Chair of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU.
She emphasized that Ukraine is implementing systemic reforms to transform the country and society. «We understand that there is still much work ahead across various sectors and that the path is quite long, but at the same time, I believe we have made significant progress,» Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze said. According to her, for candidate countries where there is political readiness and where technical and legislative alignment with EU standards is underway, it is important that the European Union does not respond to this readiness with structural hesitation. «That is why we believe that reforms and EU enlargement should go hand in hand — not as parallel processes, but as a single, coherent process. And it is this approach that will demonstrate the EU’s genuine commitment to enlargement and to building a more resilient, democratic, and capable community,» emphasized the Chair of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU.
Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze insisted that the political or internal agenda of any single EU member state should not take precedence over the dialogue between candidate countries and the European Union. «To be frank, we are very disappointed that Ukraine’s readiness to begin negotiations on the first cluster, ‘Fundamentals,’ is currently being blocked for entirely artificial reasons by just one country — Hungary. We hope this will be resolved and that the EU’s decision-making mechanism will also be changed,» said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze. She also expressed hope that the European Union will find the necessary financial instruments to ensure its readiness for enlargement. «So that together we can guarantee progress toward a more transparent, capable, economically and geopolitically stronger European Union — enlarged, resilient, and prepared for the challenges of the future,» concluded the Chairperson of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU.