Germany's Merz proposes Ukraine as EU ‘associate member’ without voting rights
- On March 25, 2026, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz proposed making Ukraine an 'associate member' of the European Union without voting rights, according to a letter seen by AFP Thursday.
- Ukraine is pushing to speed up its bid to join the 27-nation European Union while fighting Russia's invasion, especially as the United States has essentially closed the door on it joining NATO.
- Under the proposal outlined to Ursula and Antonio Costa, Ukraine could benefit from the European Union's mutual assistance clause and budget access, with non-voting representation in the European Commission.
- Kyiv's progress was previously blocked by Hungary's former premier Viktor Orban, but his ouster by Peter Magyar has raised hopes; Merz insists he still seeks Ukraine's eventual 'full member' status.
- Lawmaker Lisa Yasko asserts any country trading with Russia is on 'the wrong side of history,' advocating for a political solution to bring Ukraine immediately closer to the European Union's core institutions.
48 Articles
48 Articles
Ukraine belongs to Europe, in this the Europeans agree. Ukraine would like to become an official member of the EU and its desire has among the member states well received, but the Russian invasion is an insurmountable obstacle. After years of being long, the German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, now has an idea of how Kiev could get a little closer to the EU. Merz proposes to offer Ukraine a new special status as an ‘associated member’ of the Europ…
What will this mean for Ukraine? German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has proposed granting Ukraine the special status of "associate member" of the European Union. This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing Reuters. Read also: EU may begin accession talks with Ukraine as early as summer, says European Commissioner In a letter to EU leaders, seen by Reuters, Merz proposed granting Ukraine the new status of "associate member," which would allow Ukrainia…
In a letter to the top of the EU, the Federal Chancellor promotes "associated membership" of the candidate country. Kiev should be involved more closely in central EU institutions even before regular accession – an unusually concrete advance.
Ukraine could be associated with the European Union in the longer term perspective of accession, suggested German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in a letter sent to EU leaders, obtained on Thursday by AFP and quoted by Agerpres. Among those addressed to them are the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
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