European Commission revealed Ukraine’s “ambitious” goal of completing accession negotiations by the end of 2028, emphasizing the acceleration of reforms

The European Commission confirmed Ukraine’s readiness to open all the remaining negotiating clusters on accession to the EU. At the same time, it is important that Ukraine continue to accelerate the pace of reforms in order to be able to achieve its goal of completing accession negotiations by the end of 2028, which is an "ambitious" objective, the European Commission said on November 4, UNN reports.

Details

"Today, the European Commission adopted its annual "enlargement package," summarizing the progress made by enlargement partners over the past year and setting out reform priorities for the future. This year’s package demonstrates that sustained reform efforts are leading to tangible progress on the path to EU membership, as evidenced by Montenegro, Albania, Moldova and Ukraine. These four countries have advanced in their accession negotiations, opening clusters and provisionally closing chapters at an unprecedented pace," the European Commission said in a statement.

The reports reportedly show that the pace of reforms, particularly in the areas of democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights, alongside the political choice regarding security and defense, as well as progress toward economic convergence, directly shapes the speed of the accession process for each partner. The reforms, investments and gradual integration of enlargement partners are already strengthening the Union’s ability to protect its interests, reduce vulnerabilities and create new opportunities. To maximize these benefits before accession, the European Commission is also presenting today a joint framework for gradual integration to further deepen integration in strategic sectors such as energy, transport, digital technologies and defense. This will make gradual integration more structured and coordinated, the European Commission said.

"As enlargement partners advance along the path of reforms, the EU must be ready to welcome them and match the pace of their progress," the statement said.

As noted by the European Commission, "Ukraine has officially opened four of the six negotiating clusters on accession to the EU and 24 of the 33 negotiating chapters. In November 2026, the European Commission published a roadmap for the country with indicative priorities."

How the European Commission assessed Ukraine’s progress

"Ukraine remains committed to its path toward EU accession, despite the challenges caused by russia’s war of aggression, having opened four clusters over the past year," the report says.

"The European Commission’s assessment remains that Ukraine has fulfilled the conditions necessary to open all the remaining clusters. Ukraine continues to make progress in key sectoral reforms. Its institutional framework for combating corruption remains effective, while specialized anti-corruption institutions generally continue to operate independently and effectively," the European Commission noted.

Call to continue reforms

"The focus now should be on achieving the interim benchmarks under the rule of law, as well as implementing the roadmaps on the rule of law, the functioning of democratic institutions and public administration reform, along with the action plan on national minorities," the statement said.

It is important that Ukraine continue to accelerate the pace of reforms so that the country can achieve its ambitious goal – completing accession negotiations by the end of 2028

Clear roadmaps toward EU accession

"Given the progress achieved by Montenegro, Albania, Moldova and Ukraine, the European Commission today presented indicative roadmaps with specific milestones and objectives for the coming year. Drawing on past experience, in particular that of the 2004 and 2013 enlargements, they will help organise the next stages of preparation in a more structured and transparent manner, supporting the work of both the candidate countries and the EU institutions and Member States. The European Commission may adjust the roadmaps depending on the progress achieved in meeting the necessary conditions and will update them regularly on the basis of the progress made. The European Commission is ready to propose similar roadmaps for other candidate countries as soon as they reach a comparable level of progress, pace and participation in the accession negotiations," the statement said.

We remind you

The European Commission, as reported, was preparing a more cautious roadmap for Ukraine's EU accession negotiations, setting limited objectives for progress in 2027 while avoiding any commitments regarding the date of membership.