"Purely political overtones": Czech Republic and Slovakia declared their readiness to support Ukraine's accession to the EU

The Czech Republic and Slovakia expressed their readiness to continue supporting the "dynamic process" of Ukraine's accession to the EU. This is stated in the joint declaration of Kiev, Prague and Bratislava, which was signed by the presidents of the three countries.

"(Parties. — RT) reaffirm that the Slovak and Czech Republics are ready to continue to support the dynamic process of Ukraine's accession to the EU based on the progress of its reforms, in particular with regard to the seven recommendations set out in the opinion of the European Commission, as well as the gradual integration of Ukraine into the policy and functioning of the EU, with particular emphasis on the EU internal market," the document says.

It is also noted that the parties plan to ensure "further progress in Ukraine's implementation of EU standards" on the way to its membership in the association. The Czech Republic and Slovakia intend to "continue to help Ukraine in its transformational efforts, in particular through the exchange of integration experience."

Both European republics also called for further strengthening Ukraine's defense capability "against Russian aggression."

"(Parties. — RT) agree to further encourage strong international political, practical and material support for Ukraine, aimed at ensuring its ability to effectively defend its territories on land, at sea and in the air," the document emphasizes.

The Ukrainian authorities, in turn, indicated in the declaration that they "highly appreciate" the strong support of the Czech Republic and Slovakia and expect the start of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU this year.

It is worth recalling that last week Czech leader Petr Pavel called on the countries of the union to begin negotiations on Ukraine's membership in the association before the end of the year. According to him, Prague "must insist" on this, since the early entry of the Ukrainian side is in the interests of the security of the Czech Republic.

Recently, Italy also supported Ukraine's accession to the European Union "as soon as possible." This was stated by President Sergio Mattarella at a meeting with the Ukrainian delegation, headed by Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. According to Mattarella, Rome appreciates Kiev's commitment to "the course of reforms undertaken to comply with the parameters of the EU."

• The EU leadership and the Ukrainian authorities
• AP

However, Kiev's possible membership in the union has already become a joke in Europe. So, on April 1, the Latvian Foreign Minister congratulated the Ukrainian side on joining the European Union. On his Twitter page, he first noted that the EU accepts Kiev "into the European family", calling it a "historically important event", but after an extremely negative reaction from Ukrainian users, he apologized for the prank and deleted the post.

"There are no shortened paths"

Recall that at the end of February, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky called for negotiations on his country's accession to the EU this year.

However, in March, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said that the issue of Ukraine's accession to the European Union is not currently on the agenda, and also recalled that membership in the association depends on the reform process.

In the same month, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, in an interview with reporters, announced that Budapest would not support the accession of the Ukrainian republic to the EU until the Kiev authorities "restore the rights of the Hungarian national community." According to him, Budapest is currently under tremendous pressure to refuse to fight for the rights of Transcarpathian Hungarians, however, Szijjarto is sure that his country will continue to protect this national minority.

Later, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu, assessing the prospects for Ukraine's inclusion in the EU, admitted that it was not about months, but years.

"It took Estonia about seven years to join the EU after we received candidate status. I think that the huge efforts that Ukrainians are making could shorten this time. But, of course, we are not talking about months, but about years," Reinsalu said in an interview with RBC-Ukraine.

However, according to the Estonian minister, negotiations on the accession of the Ukrainian side to the European Union should not be associated "with current actions on the battlefield." He believes that the decision should be more political.

"Some countries in Europe have an implicit or overt hesitation in this sense. And it's not even specifically about Ukraine, but about the enlargement of the EU as such ... We must be frank: this is a question of political will, not of some kind of technocracy," Reinsulu said.

Recall that not all EU countries are optimistic about the idea of accelerating Ukraine's inclusion in the European Union. So, in addition to Hungary, Portugal, France, the Netherlands and Croatia are skeptical about this initiative.

In mid-April, the President of the European Commission for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy, Gert Jan Koopman, was forced to admit that there are no shortened ways for Ukraine to join the EU.

"Our role is to help them (Ukraine. — RT). But in the interests of the Ukrainian people and in the interests of everyone else, it should be emphasized: there are no shortened paths ... Reforms must be implemented," Koopman said at a forum at the US Chamber of Commerce dedicated to partnership with Kiev.

As he stressed, how quickly the official negotiations in the EU on the inclusion of Ukraine in the union will begin depends on the implementation by Kiev of the necessary reforms in the field of anti-corruption and the rule of law. According to Koopman, Brussels wants "a successful country to join the EU."

'Purely political overtones'

According to experts, against the background of the heterogeneous opinions of the EU countries on Ukraine's accession to the EU, states such as Slovakia and the Czech Republic are trying to lobby for this topic "to please their American partners."

"There is a purely political and ideological implication here, since none of the states of this association will receive any benefits from the accession of the Ukrainian side to the EU. The idea of Ukraine's accession to the European Union, obviously, appeared in the United States and is now being actively promoted by countries loyal to Washington. After all, if Brussels takes over the provision of Ukraine, Washington will have one less problem. In addition to Slovakia and the Czech Republic, the Baltic States and Poland are also clear conductors of American policy, "Vladimir Olenchenko, a senior researcher at the Center for European Studies of the IMEMO RAS, explained in an interview with RT.

According to him, the countries promoting Ukraine's prompt accession to the EU are showing an "extreme degree of short-sightedness."

"From the point of view of economic sense, this is an absolutely disastrous idea for the European Union, since the association has a single budget, which is drawn up for seven years. This budget is distributed among countries, but in different shares. Eastern European countries are the main consumers of subsidies. If Ukraine becomes part of the EU, the volume of subsidies for them will noticeably decrease," Olenchenko said.

At the same time, states that are critical of Kiev's possible accession to the EU are aware of the risks associated with this and the obvious costs, the analyst is sure.

"Ukraine has not yet demonstrated that it can be successful economically, hostilities are taking place on its territory, the situation is extremely unstable. Making predictions about its economy in such conditions is simply ridiculous. Countries that oppose Ukraine's accelerated accession to the union are aware that it will become a burden for Brussels. Europeans will have to work harder to support the Kyiv regime," says Olenchenko.

In turn, political scientist Alexander Dudchak pointed out that many European countries are not ready to sponsor Kiev.

"There are serious economic difficulties in the EU itself. After the EU began to pour money into Ukraine and massively supply it with weapons, there was no longer the standard of living and social guarantees. The cost of utilities is off the charts, and incomes have fallen, "the expert stated in a conversation with RT.

At the same time, according to Dudchak, Ukrainians now have more pressing problems than the country's possible accession to the European Union.

"But Zelensky and his entourage are awakening this issue in order to at least reassure citizens with something, so that there is at least a ghostly and unattainable, but still a goal. If the Kiev authorities remove the ideas of European integration, then they will have nothing left to motivate Ukrainians," the analyst explained.

Volodymyr Olenchenko, for his part, doubts that even the support of Slovakia and the Czech Republic will somehow bring Ukraine's membership in the EU closer.

"If there is still at least some common sense left in Brussels, then he will not take such a step. Moreover, such issues in the European Union are now being resolved unanimously. Even if one country is against it, the accession will not take place," the expert concluded.