Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country is making significant progress towards membership of the European Union (EU).
‘That of the European Commission Expansion pack report confirms: Ukraine is moving confidently towards EU membership and is ready to open Clusters 1, 2 and 6,” Zelenskyy wrote on X on Tuesday.
“This is the best assessment yet – proof that even as we defend against Russia’s large-scale aggression, Ukraine continues to reform and transform according to European standards.”
Ukraine has been an EU candidate country since it applied for membership in February 2022, days after the Russian invasion began.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a press conference at an EU summit in Brussels, Belgium, on Thursday, October 23, 2025. (Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP)
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The European Commission released its 2025 Enlargement Package Report on Tuesday, providing a status update on the progress of Montenegro, Albania, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Serbia, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Turkey and Georgia in meeting the conditions for EU membership.
The commission praised Ukraine for showing “remarkable resilience” in the face of the Russian invasion and a “strong commitment” to its EU accession path, but noted concerns that the country “ensures a robust and independent anti-corruption framework.”
Zelenskyy signed a controversial bill in late July that critics say would undermine the independence of Ukraine’s main anti-corruption agencies, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the specialized anti-corruption prosecutor’s office. After public protests across Ukraine and international pressure, he signed a new law on July 31 that reversed the changes.
The committee in its report called on Ukraine to maintain the independence of anti-corruption institutions and expand NABU’s jurisdiction.
Ukrainian parliamentarians vote in favor of a bill stripping anti-corruption institutions of their independence on July 22, 2025 in Kiev, Ukraine. Parliament has taken steps to limit the autonomy of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. (Andrii Nesterenko/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
“Ukraine has adopted roadmaps for the rule of law, public administration and the functioning of democratic institutions, as well as an action plan for national minorities, which have been positively assessed by the Commission. Ukraine has fulfilled the conditions necessary to open clusters: one (fundamental affairs), six (external relations) and two (internal market).” read a press release of the European Commission.
“The Commission expects that Ukraine will meet the conditions to open the remaining three clusters and aims to ensure that the Council is able to promote the opening of all clusters before the end of the year.”
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It added that the Ukrainian government has stated its objective to provisionally conclude accession negotiations by the end of 2028.
“The Commission is committed to supporting this ambitious objective, but believes that achieving it will require an acceleration of the pace of reforms, especially with regard to fundamental aspects, in particular the rule of law,” the press release continued.
Yulia Svyrydenko, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, wrote on X that the report showed the country’s best result in three years.
“The path towards EU membership remains one of the top priorities of our president, our parliament and our government,” she said.
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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has blocked progress on Ukraine’s accession to the EU, told reporters in October that he proposed a “strategic agreement” with Kiev instead of advancing talks towards full EU membership.
“The membership is too much,” Orbán explained. “We need [a] only a strategic agreement.”
