>Kallas: There is no shortcut to EU membership for Ukraine

>According to the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, the EU will not cut corners or offer shortcuts in Ukraine's membership process, reports The Guardian .

>On Tuesday, the European Commission published the EU's 2025 enlargement package, which addressed the status of the membership process of, among others, Moldova, Serbia and Georgia, in addition to Ukraine.

>In the EU accession process, negotiations are structured into six clusters, the first of which is the fundamental elements. It includes, among other things, the rule of law, economic criteria, and the functioning of democratic institutions.

>In the case of Ukraine, the Commission notes that the country, which is the target of Russia's illegal war of aggression, has successfully completed the screening process and has made progress on key reforms.

>Ukraine aims to provisionally conclude accession negotiations by 2028. In its press release, the Commission says it is committed to supporting the goal, but describes it as "ambitious".

>According to the statement, in order to achieve this goal, Ukraine must accelerate reforms, especially regarding the rule of law. Ukraine is known to have problems with corruption, and a large-scale corruption scandal was revealed in the country at the beginning of August.

>– Russia's full-scale illegal invasion of Ukraine and geopolitical changes make the necessity of enlargement very clear, Kallas commented on the situation.

>– The EU does not intend to cut corners or offer shortcuts, he added, however, reminding that the accession process is fair, rigorous and merit-based.

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