EU should initiate the process of accession of Ukraine in the EU

UKRAINE IN THE EU, AND EUROPE IN UKRAINE, IMMEDIATELY

APPEAL

to the European Parliament,
the European Council,
the Council of the European Union,
the European Commission

Considering that Ukraine’s aspiration to join the European Union reflects the will of its society, as showed by the events in Maidan Square in 2014, with the Ukraine’s people peacefully steering the country’s future towards Europe, and that this aspiration has been included in Kyiv’s Constitutional Charter; 

Recalling that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, which began with the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and proceeded with the full-scale invasion of 2022, has been Moscow’s response to Kyiv’s European aspirations, which Russia intends to punish by all means in defiance of European democratic values; 

Believing that the violence perpetrated by Russian Federation against Ukraine, in violation of various commitments to respect Ukraine’s territorial and political sovereignty and international law, has been at the same time a direct attack both to both European values and to the security of the European Union itself; 

Expressing concern about the recent requests from the new U. S.  administration that, though different, represent a serious threat to Ukraine’s sovereignty, conditioning Kyiv to a logic of mere balance of power among states and directly harming European interests in its alliance with Kyiv; 

We declare that Ukraine’s accession to the European Union is now imperative and that it represents the only viable option to ensure that the political, military, and financial support provided so far by the EU to Ukraine’s brave resistance will not be lost; We affirm that Ukraine’s accession represents at the same time: 

• The recognition of the European aspiration that Ukraine has chosen and pursued since its independence, for which it has paid a high price in resisting Russian aggression.

• A security guarantee for Ukraine, which would otherwise remain under constant Russian threat, and at the same time a reinforcement of the European Union’s security, to which Kyiv would make a crucial contribution.
• The beginning of a long-overdue dynamic for the EU institutional reform, breaking the current inertia and enabling significant progress in various EU policies, including energy and food security, fight against hybrid wars, defence policy and safeguard of the European interests in the Black Sea and in South Eastern Europe.

 We appeal for a rapid and decisive action, given the rapidly evolving global political scenario that requests timely and adequate responses; we stress that the current EU accession process, as structured under Article 49 of the TEU, could be extremely long, making accession practically useless and reducing its benefits for both Ukraine and the European Union.

 We emphasize that EU accession must be accompanied by a range of transitional measures and derogatory regimes, with gradual implementation in many areas, as has already occurred in previous accessions procedures.

 We call for the activation of a special procedure for Ukraine’s immediate accession, which is fully compatible with EU law and Article 49 of the TEU, the legal basis for the accession process.

 We recall that Ukraine meets two essential requirements for accession: its European identity (it is also a member of the Council of Europe) and its commitment to promoting the values as listed in Article 2 of the TEU, including democracy, the rule of law, and the protection of human rights.

 We recall that the Treaties, by mentioning state negotiations and considering the Council’s position, make Article 49 compatible with an “ex post” adjustment process to align the acquis communautaire of the acceding state.

 We further note that this practice has been followed during the first forty years of the Treaty of Rome, with accession recognized immediately after the accession conference, followed by transitional periods for legislative and administrative alignment.

 We therefore call upon the only EU bodies empowered under Article 49 to process accession applications to grant Ukraine immediate accession upon the cessation of military hostilities, applying the Treaties only to the territories under Kyiv’s effective control, as was the case with Cyprus in 2004.

 We proclaim that by activating such procedure, based on a conscious political choice aligned with the EU’s ambitions, Ukraine’s accession would constitute a decisive step – most likely the only possible step – that would enable the EU to reclaim a leading role, rather than merely reacting to the ongoing conflict and to peace initiatives that seek to marginalize it.

 Finally, it would send a clear message to Russian Federation and to the international community about European unity and the EU’s strategic vision in defending its collective interests.

Signatories:

– Viktoriia Lapa, accademica ucraina; Tenured Lecturer del Dipartimento di Giurisprudenza, Università Bocconi.

– ALEXANDER MOTYL, accademico, studioso e artista, politologo, poeta, scrittore, traduttore e pittore americano, residente a New York City, professore di scienze politiche alla Rutgers-Newark. Specialista di Ucraina, Russia e di URSS, ha pubblicato numerosi libri sul nazionalismo, sulle rivoluzioni, sugli imperi.

– BOHDAN VITVITSKY, dell’Advisory Board di VoxUkraine Law, President Ukrainian Studies Fund, USA, già procuratore Dipartimento di giustizia USA

Maurizio Turco, Segretario del Partito Radicale
Irene Testa, Tesoriere del Partito Radicale
Mariano Giustino, Corrispondente di Radio Radicale dalla Turchia