Ukraine's expectations from Poland's EU presidency in 2025: Ambassador's assessment
Ambassador of Ukraine to Poland Vasyl Bodnar (photo: Getty Images)
Poland will hold the presidency of the European Union in the first half of 2025. Ukraine expects Poland's assistance in European integration, says Ambassador of Ukraine to Poland Vasyl Bodnar.
He noted that Ukraine wants to open the negotiating chapters as soon as possible. At the same time, the ambassador said that Ukraine cannot cover all the tasks at once in six months. It is known that Poland has agreed on joint plans for the EU presidency.
Bodnar added that last week he had talks with Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna and the Polish Minister for European Union Affairs.
“...we discussed immediate priorities, what we want to achieve, which chapters are a priority for us, and we ask our Polish partners to help us with internal communication in the European Union, as well as to communicate directly with capitals so that this process has absolute support among most EU countries,” the diplomat said.
The ambassador also emphasized that Ukraine needs expert assistance from the Polish side in joining the EU, and training specialists and government officials.
To recap, Hungary held the presidency of the European Union in the second half of 2024. After Poland, Denmark will hold the EU presidency.
Ukraine's accession to the EU
During the full-scale war, Ukraine took a step towards European integration. In June 2022, the European Commission granted Ukraine the status of a candidate for accession to the European Union. This decision was unanimously supported by all the leaders of the bloc.
Along with the EU candidate status, Ukraine received a list of conditions to be fulfilled in order to further advance on the path of European integration.
In November 2023, the European Commission gave the green light to negotiations on Ukraine's membership in the EU. According to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine wants to open all negotiating clusters with the EU in 2025.
