Robert Fico on Thursday, May 21, rejected German Friedrich Merz’s proposal to grant Ukraine an associate EU status without voting rights while accession talks continue, the Kyiv Post reported. Fico said there is currently no political atmosphere in the EU for such steps.
“Either we admit someone, or we don’t,” the Slovak leader was quoted as saying by the Czech portal Denník N. “Today there is no atmosphere in the European Union to take steps of this kind,” he added. Fico stressed that other candidate countries such as Montenegro, Albania, and Serbia also have a right to join the Union.
Ukraine fears that a temporary status could slow its path toward full membership. Merz had previously proposed granting Ukraine a form of associate membership without voting rights during the lengthy accession process.
Source: www.kyivpost.com
