Ukraine's desire to move quickly on the path to EU membership "is creating tension between Kyiv, Brussels, and some European capitals" ahead of next week's official opening of the first negotiating cluster, Politico reports, citing claims by EU diplomats and officials, according to UNN.
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"Kyiv and Brussels publicly hailed the likely start of official negotiations on June 15 as a breakthrough. But Ukraine is concerned that its bid could be 'parked' due to political issues, including the presidential elections in France. This could push enlargement off the EU agenda. Meanwhile, Brussels is concerned about the pace of reforms in Kyiv," the publication states.
Discussion papers published by Paris and Berlin, which promote "associate membership" for Kyiv and other interim solutions for candidate states, are "grating on nerves," the outlet writes. "In practice, Ukraine is being offered everything except membership itself," said Ukraine's Ambassador to the EU, Vsevolod Chentsov.
"The risk for Ukraine is that it remains in a side room — with some benefits of integration with the EU, but without a clear path to full membership. Kyiv is not rejecting the Franco-German ideas, but wants stronger guarantees regarding where this will end," according to officials briefed on the talks.
Ukraine wants to open not one, but several negotiating clusters by the end of this summer as a signal to its war-weary politicians and voters that EU membership is a real prospect, not an impossible dream, the publication points out.
"Brussels is concerned about frustration as a risk factor for Ukraine's internal reforms. Indeed, progress in passing key laws required for EU accession has slowed in recent months amid vacant seats in the Rada, the national parliament, and fears that some measures will not gain a majority if put to a vote," the article says.
EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos visited bomb-damaged Kyiv this week with a "keep calm and carry on" message when she met with Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and the heads of parliamentary committees responsible for reviewing reforms, the outlet notes.
"The feeling in the room was that both sides are really starting to roll up their sleeves and take a much more practical part in the accession process," said an EU official who shared details of Kos's trip.
"Managing Kyiv's bid for EU membership is a delicate dance for Brussels and EU capitals. The stakes are high, and mistakes will have painful consequences," the publication notes.