The Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, one step closer to the EU
Chișinău and Kyiv have entered a new stage of their European progress
Daniela Budu, 16.06.2026, 13:50
The Republic of Moldova and Ukraine opened the first chapter of their EU negotiations in Luxembourg on Monday. This is one of the most important chapters as it focuses on legislation in the field of justice, the fight against corruption, the rule of law, the proper functioning of democratic institutions, public administration and economy rules. The head of the European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, says that both countries have delivered on difficult reforms under extraordinary circumstances. Ukraine and Moldova’s future lie in the European Union. Their membership will make also Europe stronger.
In turn, the European Commission Chief, Ursula von der Leyen, says the EU decision is ‘a recognition of the determination, courage and hard work shown by both countries in advancing reforms, even in the face of immense challenges.’ Von der Leyen says “the enlargement remains one of the EU’s greatest success stories and our best investment in our shared future.”
In another development, during the intergovernmental conference ‘The Republic of Moldova – the European Union’, also held in Luxembourg, the deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, Cristina Gherasimov, explains the Republic of Moldova will reiterate its commitment to implementing the necessary reforms in all the domains the talks are focusing on in order to get ready for the EU accession.
Cristina Gherasimov: “This is a long-awaited moment for us, and we have made a lot of efforts for this moment, by the state institutions as well as by the European institutions and by every EU capital. The EU is going to expose its common negotiation position for the Republic of Moldova candidate namely it is going to present the European standards we have to achieve as a country, in order to be ready to join and become part of the big European family.”
The first intergovernmental conference between the Republic of Moldova and the EU took place in June 2024, marking the official launch of the accession negotiation. Then, for nearly 15 months, Moldova’s legislation and institutions were being evaluated according to the European standards.
The meeting in Luxembourg on Monday represented the next stage of the process and was devoted to the opening of cluster one, which means the members consider the Republic of Moldova ready to go farther in the accession negotiations. The Union just like Chișinău and Kyiv wants to step up the process, so the following five chapters would open in July. The process of legislative adjusting to the European norms, also known as the process of implementing the community acquis, is taking between 6 and 10 years on an average. However, in the case of the two countries the deadline is more optimistic, around the year 2030. We recall the two countries were accepted as candidates shortly after Russia had invaded Ukraine in 2022. The process was frozen for a period by Hungary’s veto.
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