Former head of the European Union delegation to Ukraine José Manuel Pinto Teixeira said that Ukraine is currently more ready to join the EU than a number of Western Balkan countries. He said this in an interview with Deutsche Welle. According to the diplomat, fears about the new stage of EU enlargement are exaggerated.
Teixeira noted that Ukraine has significant potential for the EU: it is a large country with natural resources, developed agriculture, and an educated and hard-working population that has demonstrated resilience and courage in the face of war. He stressed that Ukraine’s accession would be an “important acquisition” for the European Union in terms of territory, resources, and human capital.
The former ambassador recalled that Ukraine has made significant progress in the fight against “physical corruption” since the Revolution of Dignity, but such reforms always take a long time. He stressed that Ukraine remains a unique case in modern history: a country in the midst of a full-scale war is simultaneously carrying out reforms and moving towards European integration.
Teixeira pointed out that Ukraine continues to reform its public administration system amid constant Russian missile and drone attacks on civilian infrastructure. At the same time, Moscow, despite its status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, is effectively avoiding international responsibility for its actions.
Assessing the prospects for EU enlargement, Teixeira said that the long preparation period for the Western Balkan countries does not in itself mean that they are more ready for accession than Ukraine. In his view, Kyiv is already ahead of a number of Balkan states in terms of its fulfillment of most of the key criteria, but must continue with reforms even after receiving candidate status.
He recalled that Ukraine is moving forward in the same “enlargement package” as Moldova and the Western Balkan states of Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, North Macedonia, Kosovo, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which have been negotiating for many years but face chronic problems of the rule of law, corruption, and territorial disputes.
José Manuel Pinto Teixeira headed the EU Delegation to Ukraine from 2008 to 2012 and is now vice president of the European Center for Electoral Support (ECES) in Brussels.
BALKAN COUNTRIES, EUROPEAN UNION, Teixeira
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