Ukraine is lagging behind Moldova on its path to EU membership because of ineffective efforts to root out corruption. Financial Times Although both countries applied to join the bloc at the same time, Brussels said Chisinau was on track to complete membership negotiations by early 2028, while Kiev would need another year and "an acceleration of the pace of reforms" to complete the process, the newspaper writes. While the commission praised Ukraine's efforts "in the face of the most difficult circumstances caused by Russia's war of aggression," it said Kyiv still needed to "demonstrate significant progress" in the fight against corruption. The EC said Moldova's goal of completing accession negotiations by early 2028 was "ambitious but achievable". According to her, Chisinau can complete 25 negotiation chapters in 2027, while Kyiv is expected to complete negotiations in only seven chapters next year. The EU accession negotiations are divided into 35 chapters, grouped by subject, according to which candidate countries must adapt their legislation to EU law. In addition, the FT notes that Ukraine's funding for the coming years is also in jeopardy. Kyiv faces a funding gap of 70 billion euros in 2027, of which the European Commission has pledged to cover two-thirds, or about 45 billion euros, and is working on options to address the problem, including issuing joint debt.

Ukraine is lagging behind Moldova on its path to EU membership because of ineffective efforts to root out corruption. Financial Times Although both countries applied to join the bloc at the same time, Brussels said Chisinau was on track to complete membership negotiations by early 2028, while Kiev would need another year and "an acceleration of the pace of reforms" to complete the process, the newspaper writes. While the commission praised Ukraine's efforts "in the face of the most difficult circumstances caused by Russia's war of aggression," it said Kyiv still needed to "demonstrate significant progress" in the fight against corruption. The EC said Moldova's goal of completing accession negotiations by early 2028 was "ambitious but achievable". According to her, Chisinau can complete 25 negotiation chapters in 2027, while Kyiv is expected to complete negotiations in only seven chapters next year. The EU accession negotiations are divided into 35 chapters, grouped by subject, according to which candidate countries must adapt their legislation to EU law. In addition, the FT notes that Ukraine's funding for the coming years is also in jeopardy. Kyiv faces a funding gap of 70 billion euros in 2027, of which the European Commission has pledged to cover two-thirds, or about 45 billion euros, and is working on options to address the problem, including issuing joint debt.