The EU will make a second attempt to convince Hungary to open negotiating clusters with Ukraine

The EU Council’s Working Party on Enlargement (COELA) will make a second attempt on July 22 to convince Hungary to approve the opening of the second and third clusters in Ukraine’s accession negotiations with the bloc.

This is reported by Evropeyska Pravda, citing EU diplomats.

According to the publication’s source, the Irish presidency and EU member states will make a second attempt to persuade Hungary’s representative to support a decision to approve the screening results and send both countries — Ukraine and Moldova — letters requesting that they submit their negotiating positions on both clusters. Sending such a letter constitutes the formal start of the procedure for opening the clusters.

“The Irish presidency and EU member states will make a second attempt to convince Hungary’s representative to support a decision to approve the screening results and send both countries letters requesting that they provide the EU with their negotiating positions on both clusters,” the publication’s source said.

Ireland, which holds the EU presidency, is seeking to launch preparations for opening the next clusters — or at least one of them — for Ukraine and Moldova before the summer recess, in order to hold an intergovernmental conference as early as September. The publication describes the optimistic plan as opening all clusters by the end of 2026.

Hungary has been consistently slowing down the negotiation process. In late June, Euronews reported, citing several officials and diplomats, that due to Budapest’s position the EU had changed its plan and now intends to unblock two negotiating clusters in July rather than five. On June 23, Politico, citing two European diplomats, reported that Hungary had not supported the proposal to open new clusters. In early July, Hungary did allow the EU to begin the next cluster of negotiations with Ukraine, but opposed accelerating the accession process — this was stated by former Hungarian Minister for EU Affairs János Bóka.

The first cluster in Ukraine’s and Moldova’s EU accession negotiations opened on June 15. EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos said at the time that she planned to open the remaining five clusters in July. The European Parliament had previously stated that a scenario of Ukraine’s rapid accession to the EU was not under discussion.