Ireland wants Ukraine’s final EU clusters open within seven weeks. Hungary still hasn’t said yes
Budapest has raised no new minority-rights demands, Kyiv says, but it has held up the last two clusters since June.
Ireland's Prime Minister Micheál Martin, who currently leads the EU presidency, expressed optimism about opening Ukraine's final two EU negotiation clusters within the next seven weeks. The statement came during a press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Dublin on November 11. Ukraine is in the process of negotiating its membership in the EU while simultaneously defending itself against Russia's ongoing invasion.
According to the Irish premier, many other EU nations share this urgency. Martin claimed that persuading the remaining holdouts would be necessary to ensure Ukraine's full accession to the Union. Clusters 4 and 5, focusing on transport, energy, climate, agriculture, regional policy, and budget rules, are the last two to be opened before Ukraine can join the EU.
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy emphasized the importance of opening all negotiating clusters this year during his address in Dublin. Meanwhile, Hungary, under new leadership, has yet to provide its approval for the screening results of clusters 4 and 5. The decision was made during a meeting of the Council of the EU's enlargement working group (COELA) on November 10, as reported by Yevropeiska Pravda.
This is not the first time Hungary has delayed the process. The country refused to approve the screening results for clusters 4 and 5 on October 20 and again on October 27. In June, Budapest had also held up the screening for clusters 2–6, stating that its experts needed more time to review the content of the negotiating chapters. However, Budapest has not introduced any new demands concerning these chapters.
The delay in opening the clusters is also affecting Moldova, whose candidacy for EU membership has been closely tied to Ukraine's since 2022. Both Ukraine and Moldova are technically ready to open the remaining clusters, according to the European Commission. Moldovan President Maia Sandu highlighted this issue during a conversation with a Hungarian outlet on November 2 and called for the European Council to address the stalled clusters during their final summit of the year.
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