EU Praises Ukraine, Warns on Anti-Corruption Backsliding

The European Commission praised Ukraine’s “remarkable commitment” and progress on reforms despite Russia’s full‑scale war but warned Kyiv must accelerate reforms to meet its goal of closing accession talks by the end of 2028 and decisively reverse recent negative trends, notably growing pressure on specialised anti‑corruption agencies and civil society. The report identifies Montenegro, Albania and Moldova as frontrunners—with Montenegro potentially concluding negotiations by 2026—while singling out Serbia and Georgia for democratic backsliding and noting rule‑of‑law concerns in Turkey and other candidates. It underscores that formal accession still requires unanimous ratification by all EU member states and says enlargement is politically fraught because of national vetoes, notably Hungary and at times Slovakia. Commissioner Marta Kos urged member states to give a political signal so technical negotiating work can proceed even without unanimity, and the Commission said it stands ready to support candidate countries. The Commission insisted on concrete acceleration in anti‑corruption, judicial‑independence, public‑administration and fundamental‑rights reforms to keep enlargement realistic in the coming years.