Ukraine crosses key EU threshold as four candidate nations advance in single day

Ukraine has entered the second stage of its European Union accession negotiations, four years after it was granted official candidate status in 2022. The country has now opened two of the six negotiating clusters required for full membership, but a long road remains.

The EU formally launched the second negotiating cluster with Ukraine and Moldova on Tuesday, covering security and defense as well as foreign policy, according to Italian news agency ANSA and other foreign media. The opening came roughly a month after the first cluster — addressing the rule of law, judicial reform and public administration standards — was launched on June 15.

EU candidate countries must align their laws and institutions with EU standards across six thematic clusters and 35 negotiating chapters covering areas including the rule of law, security, the environment and agriculture. Ukraine has yet to close any chapter.

Ukraine's accession talks had stalled since it obtained candidate status in 2022. A breakthrough came after pro-Russia former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban lost power following a general election in April.

Tuesday's meeting was held on the sidelines of the EU General Affairs Council, chaired by Ireland. Ambassadors from the 27 member states agreed Friday to hold intergovernmental conferences with four candidate countries.

Serbia was left off the list after at least eight member states opposed opening negotiations with it. A senior EU official told reporters that an intergovernmental conference with Serbia could not be scheduled because no agreement was reached on launching three chapters.

EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos called Tuesday a "super Tuesday for EU enlargement policy." In an interview with Politico, she described the simultaneous progress made by the four leading candidate countries in a single day as "the first time in 20 years" such a thing had happened.

"The momentum of EU enlargement is growing stronger, and it is now undeniable that Ukraine, Moldova, Montenegro and Albania will become EU member states before long," she said.

Politico's European edition called it the most notable day of progress on EU enlargement in years.

The EU, which shrank to 27 member states after Brexit, currently recognizes nine official candidate countries: Ukraine, Moldova, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Serbia, Georgia and Turkey.