President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has responded to reports about a potential "partial membership" plan for Ukraine in the European Union, emphasizing that Kyiv needs a concrete date for accession.
Speaking during an online media briefing, Zelenskyy addressed recent speculation following a Politico report suggesting the EU is considering an unprecedented plan that could grant Ukraine partial membership as early as next year. The plan would allegedly give Ukraine a seat at the EU table before completing all reforms required for full membership rights.
"I treat such rumors very cautiously," Zelenskyy said, outlining Ukraine's position on the matter.
"I said the following and want to emphasize this – Ukraine will do everything to be technically ready for accession by 2027. At least we will do the main things. Second: I want a concrete date," the president stated.
Zelenskyy warned that without a specific accession date in any potential agreement between the United States, Russia, Ukraine, and Europe, Russia "will do everything afterwards to block the process."
"Therefore, for us, the EU is about specifics, because this is, I emphasize once again, security guarantees. Security guarantees for Ukraine are specifics with a concrete date," he added.
The comments come as Brussels has developed a new format for working on Ukraine's EU accession. The arrangement allows practical membership preparation to proceed despite Hungary's veto on starting negotiations.
Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Ihor Zhovkva recently said that Ukraine expects a political decision on EU membership in 2027.
