Ukraine Seeks to Join the European Union

The Ukrainian government is looking for a quick way to join the EU as the country fights Russia's aggression. However, negotiations among EU member states usually last for more than a decade and involve a wide range of domestic economic, legal and political demands. EU member states were also suffering from expansion. 

Ukraine has been discussing EU accession for a long time, but under the economic and political agreement of 2014, relations between Ukraine and the bloc have been significantly strengthened.

Ukraine formally applied to join the EU  on February 28, and the bloc's governments discussed whether to offer Kyiv so-called candidate status, the first step towards joining the bloc. This should be accepted by all 27 member States. Some EU countries have become sceptical of the wisdom of further expansion of the bloc and public opinion has opposed expansion in some countries.

To become a member of the EU, a country must close 35 arduous "chapters" dealing with everything from judicial independence to foreign policy adjustment to the EU and far-reaching economic and financial changes.