President Zelensky urged the EU to answer Ukraine’s accession

Recently, President Zelensky told Dutch television station NOS that Prime Minister Mark Rutte needs to clarify whether Ukraine has a future in the EU. Rutte is among a number of leading EU politicians who have expressed doubts about Ukraine’s ability to quickly join the bloc.

Mr. Rutte spoke to Mr. Zelensky by phone on May 26, two weeks after his speech to Ukraine’s parliament in Kiev. Rutte expressed her support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia but did not give any indication as to whether Kiev’s application to join the EU would be accepted in the near future.

“I spoke to him very openly. If Rutte thinks there is no place for us in the EU, then he should make it very clear,” Mr. Zelensky told NOS.

“EU membership will help us a lot in our fight against Russia,” he said.

Rutte previously warned that if Ukraine could easily become an EU member as proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, it would be unfair to other candidates such as Turkey and Montenegro.

Addressing Dutch lawmakers earlier this month, Rutte said Ukraine would need to carry out a lot of reforms before it wanted to be considered a potential candidate, and stressed that Kiev’s current candidacy was very ‘distant’.

French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune also stated earlier this month that Ukraine could take “15 or 20 years” to join the EU. While in March 2022, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warned that “joining the EU is not something that can be done in a few months”. French President Emmanuel Macron proposed inviting Ukraine to join the “European political community” as an alternative, but Zelensky rejected the plan altogether.

Ukraine’s corruption problem is seen as a major obstacle to EU membership. The country ranks as the most corrupt in Europe and one of the most corrupt in the world.

Responding to NOS, Mr. Zelensky dismissed these concerns. “How do you know that there is corruption in Ukraine?” he asked interviewer Marielle Tweebeeke. “Do you live here?”

When noted that these allegations of corruption were raised in “official reports”, Mr Zelensky countered: “What makes them official?”

“Yes, there is a problem,” the Ukrainian president admitted. “But every country has this situation, even the EU countries. We will also have our own reforms.”

EU sources told Bloomberg last month that a preliminary decision on Ukraine’s candidacy could be made as early as June 2022.