Ukraine needs to accelerate reforms to meet its EU accession goal, bloc’s executive says

(Adds details and background in paragraphs 4-9) BRUSSELS, Nov 4 - ​Ukraine would need to speed up ​reforms if Kyiv wants to meet ‌its ​own European Union accession negotiation goal, the European Commission said in a report on Wednesday.

“The Ukrainian government has signalled its objective ‌to close accession negotiations by the end of 2028,” the EU’s executive body said in a report on enlargement policy. “The Commission is committed to support this ambitious objective but considers that to ‌meet it an acceleration of the pace of reforms is required,” it added.

Ukrainian President ‌Volodymyr Zelenskiy has made EU membership a core foreign policy goal, presenting it as a way to ensure long-term prosperity and security for both his country and Europe as a whole in the face of Russian aggression. The ⁠process for ​joining the bloc ⁠is usually long and bureaucratic, involving years of detailed negotiations and legal reforms to meet EU standards. Accession also ⁠requires ratification by all the EU's current members.

“Amid the difficult circumstances brought by Russia’s ongoing war of ​aggression, Ukraine remained committed to the EU integration reform agenda,” the Commission said in ⁠its report, adding that Ukraine should now focus on meeting rule of law standards and delivering on an action ⁠plan ​on national minorities, and that Kyiv should implement justice reform and demonstrate progress in tackling corruption. European leaders granted Ukraine and Moldova candidate status in June 2022.

In its report, the ⁠Commission indicated that Moldova is advancing more quickly on reforms than Ukraine. “The government of Moldova has ⁠signalled its objective ⁠to provisionally close accession negotiations by early 2028. The Commission is committed to supporting this objective, which is ambitious but achievable, provided Moldova maintains ‌the current pace ‌of reforms,” it said.