Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has firmly rejected a German proposal that would grant Ukraine an \u2018associate membership\u2019 status in the European Union without full voting rights, reaffirming that Kyiv seeks full membership rather than what many in Ukraine increasingly describe as a potential \u2018second-tier membership\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u2018There can be no complete European project without Ukraine, and Ukraine\u2019s place in the European Union must also be complete\u2014full and equal,\u2019 Zelenskyy wrote on X on Saturday, 23 May, responding directly to a proposal floated earlier this week by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.<\/p>\n
No Appetite for Associate Membership<\/strong><\/p>\n In a letter to EU leaders seen by Reuters, Merz suggested creating a new \u2018associate member\u2019 category<\/a> for Ukraine as an interim step towards future accession. Under the proposal, Kyiv would gain access to several EU institutions and programmes, including participation in European Council and Commission meetings, but without formal voting rights.<\/p>\n Merz reportedly framed the idea as a pragmatic compromise that could accelerate Ukraine\u2019s integration while acknowledging that full EU membership remains a lengthy and politically difficult process, especially amid the ongoing war with Russia. The German proposal would also reportedly allow broader participation in EU structures such as the single market, customs union, Erasmus, and Horizon programmes.<\/p>\n The proposal, first reported by Reuters on 21 May, triggered immediate backlash both in Kyiv and within parts of the European Union itself. Zelenskyy warned that any arrangement leaving Ukraine \u2018voiceless\u2019 inside the bloc would be \u2018unfair<\/a>\u2019, particularly given what he described as \u2018Ukraine\u2019s role in Europe\u2019s security architecture\u2019 since the outbreak of the full-scale war in 2022.<\/p>\n \u2018Merz suggested creating a new \u201cassociate member\u201d category for Ukraine as an interim step towards future accession\u2019<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n In a letter addressed to European Council President Ant\u00f3nio Costa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides, Zelenskyy argued that Ukraine was defending Europe \u2018fully, not partially, and not with half-measures\u2019.<\/p>\n The European Commission, reacting cautiously to the proposal, warned that any \u2018innovative solution\u2019 must still respect the bloc\u2019s traditional merit-based accession process, signalling concerns that a special arrangement for Ukraine could undermine enlargement rules or establish precedents for other candidate countries.<\/p>\n According to Euronews, several EU diplomats privately questioned whether Merz\u2019s proposal would even be legally feasible without treaty changes<\/a>. One diplomat quoted by the outlet argued that granting a non-member country participation rights in EU institutions through political agreements alone would be extremely difficult under the current treaties. Others fear that the creation of a permanent \u2018outer circle\u2019 of semi-members could further weaken the credibility of the enlargement process itself, which already faces criticism for prioritizing Ukraine and Moldova over long-standing Western Balkan candidates, some of which have been negotiating accession for many years or even decades.<\/p>\n Orb\u00e1n Was Never the Only Obstacle<\/strong><\/p>\n The current controversy surrounding Ukraine\u2019s EU membership is also particularly revealing from a Hungarian perspective. Former prime minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s government had long been portrayed as the sole obstacle to Ukraine\u2019s full EU accession<\/a>\u2014a narrative strongly promoted by Kyiv, Brussels, numerous EU member states, and much of the Western media. Following Orb\u00e1n\u2019s departure and the arrival of P\u00e9ter Magyar\u2019s administration, however, it has become increasingly clear that the issue is considerably more complex.<\/p>\n Speaking to POLITICO Brussels, Ukraine\u2019s ambassador to the EU, Katarina Mathernova, acknowledged that while \u2018Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s fall\u2019 may have created \u2018fresh momentum\u2019 for Ukraine within the EU, \u2018he was not the only obstacle to Kyiv\u2019. \u2018There were others hiding behind him,\u2019 Mathernova stated.<\/p>\n That argument had frequently been raised by the previous Hungarian administration as well, with former Foreign Minister P\u00e9ter Szijj\u00e1rt\u00f3 repeatedly claiming that officials from other EU member states privately thanked Hungary for vetoing certain sanctions targeting Russia on their behalf.<\/p>\n Now that Orb\u00e1n has left office and those governments no longer have a convenient scapegoat to point towards, it is becoming increasingly apparent that not only is Ukraine\u2019s fast-track accession unrealistic, but the country may ultimately face a negotiation process as long\u2014or potentially even longer\u2014than that experienced by Western Balkan candidates. Recent polling data<\/a> also suggest that several major Western European member states are becoming increasingly sceptical about the rapid accession of Ukraine.<\/p>\n With France preparing for a presidential election next year, Friedrich Merz facing historically high disapproval ratings, and anti-establishment political forces continuing to strengthen across Western Europe, governments are understandably reluctant to aggressively push Ukraine\u2019s accelerated EU accession against increasingly cautious public opinion.<\/p>\n Similar dynamics are visible in Hungary as well, despite Orb\u00e1n\u2019s departure. According to a recent poll by Europion, more than 30 per cent of Hungarians believe that \u2018opening towards Ukraine\u2019 should not be a top foreign policy priority<\/a>, making it the most divisive issue measured in the survey.<\/p>\n Against that backdrop, Prime Minister P\u00e9ter Magyar and the Tisza government\u2014while visibly pursuing a less confrontational approach towards Ukraine than Orb\u00e1n\u2019s administration\u2014also appear increasingly cautious regarding Kyiv\u2019s EU bid. Since taking office, Magyar has repeatedly stated that Hungary will support the opening of key accession negotiation clusters only if Ukraine restores<\/a> full linguistic, educational, and cultural rights for the Hungarian minority living in Transcarpathia, one of the central demands previously emphasized by the Orb\u00e1n government as well.<\/p>\n\n