EU works on Ukraine, Moldova accession plan to bypass Hungary’s veto

The European Union has launched technical work on Ukraine and Moldova’s accession in a way that bypasses Hungary’s opposition, the Financial Times reported.

The European Commission proposed adjusting rules to overcome Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s veto, suggesting that accession talks could be organized in “clusters” – blocks of policy areas where candidate countries must align with EU standards.

EU leaders will discuss the plan at a meeting in Copenhagen on October 1, joined the next day by leaders from other countries including Ukraine and Moldova.

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Taras Kachka told FT that Kyiv still hopes to persuade Budapest to allow negotiations, noting that final membership requires unanimous approval. He said he hoped Hungary would “adjust” its stance out of “respect.”

In August, Politico reported that Brussels was considering accelerating Moldova’s accession by opening a negotiation cluster before parliamentary elections to bolster pro-European forces.

Orban has argued that Ukraine’s membership would harm Hungary’s economy and drain resources, adding that he would not finance Kyiv’s accession.