“If Ukraine wants to be a member of the EU in a short time, then it should not just be a perfectionist, but a champion among perfectionists.”

This was emphasized by Sergiy Solodkyy, First Deputy Director of the New Europe Center, during his speech at the panel discussion “Ukraine’s Way to the EU: What is the Role of Mass Media in this Process?” at the Donbas Media Forum on November 10, 2023.

The discussion was held with the participation of Katarina Maternova, EU Ambassador to Ukraine and Dariya Kalenyuk, Co-founder of the International Center for Ukrainian Victory, Executive Director and Co-founder of the Anti-Corruption Action Center moderated by Serhiy Stukanov, Founder of the Institute for Donbas Integration, Head of the analytical department at the Center for Content Analysis, host of Ukrainian Radio.

“I would compare the latest decision of the European Commission with university admission. The opening of negotiations is admission to the university, studying in it is the adaptation of EU standards and rules, and obtaining a diploma is obtaining full membership in the EU“, said Solodkyy. “I would only like to emphasize that my metaphor applies only to very correct, demanding universities. This university, codenamed “Europeanization,” does not give diplomas with poor or average grades. A country that doesn`t implement EU standards can remain at the stage of “training,” the introductory process”, he said.

Will Ukraine be able to implement its obligations in a short time? Some numbers for thought. If we talk about averaged time indicators, the path from applying by a country to obtaining EU membership was on average 9 years (for 21 member countries; we do not take into account the 6 founding countries). The entrance process took an average of 4 years. The fastest in this regard were Austria, Finland, Sweden (1.3 years). The slowest – Portugal, Spain, Croatia (more than 6 years).

“The Ukrainian authorities have set a high bar for themselves – to be ready for membership in two years. Is this deadline realistic? I’m a cautious optimist. However, in the case of Ukraine, the saying is fair: “never say never.” This will require demonstrating extraordinary political will, determination and responsibility in the reform process. Ukraine has already proved that its path to the EU is unique” – Sergiy Solodkyy concluded.

During his speech, he also recalled that the New Europe Center initiated an independent monitoring of Ukraine’s implementation of European integration recomendations called Candidate Check. Since Ukraine received candidate status, five issues of evaluation have been prepared.