Єлісєйські поля | Despite all these risks, it would be a mistake to reject Friedrich Mer...

Despite all these risks, it would be a mistake to reject Friedrich Merz’s proposal sharply and categorically. It contains strong elements.First, Germany is demonstrating political will to move enlargement forward. This matters, because without Germany no major European process will have sufficient weight.Second, the idea of opening all negotiating clusters as soon as possible corresponds to Ukraine’s interests. This should be the centre of the discussion and of our efforts — not symbolic institutional fantasies or the drawing up of lists of future “voiceless” Members of the European Parliament.Third, the concept could become an “Association Agreement Plus”: deeper access to the single market, EU industrial chains, defence programmes, energy, transport, the digital space, financial and other practical instruments.Fourth, mechanisms to punish backsliding on reforms can be useful for Ukrainian civil society. Ukraine needs not only carrots, but also sticks against attempts by the authorities to stop or imitate reforms. But these conditions must work honestly: they should discipline and motivate the Ukrainian authorities, not give the EU an excuse to postpone membership indefinitely.Ukraine’s position should be simple: yes to everything that accelerates full membership; no to everything that substitutes for it or obstructs it.Ukraine can agree to interim benefits only under clear conditions: the status must be temporary; the final goal — full membership — must be explicitly fixed; all negotiating clusters must be opened without political delay; Ukraine must not be decoupled from Moldova and other countries — such an interim status should be available to every candidate country; people and businesses must receive concrete benefits; and reforms must be not a declaration, but a strict requirement for the Ukrainian authorities.Most importantly: no format without voting rights and real influence can be called a victory. It will be a victory when Ukraine becomes a full member of the EU and takes part in shaping the future of a united Europe itself.In its time, the Sarkozy initiative — thanks to the right policy by the Ukrainian side — ultimately accelerated the conclusion of the Association Agreement. The Merz initiative may either accelerate Ukraine’s path to membership or, conversely, freeze it in the status of an “eternal candidate”.