Ukraine says it is ‘technically ready’ for talks with the EU, but there are still no real guarantees or timeline

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky told journalists that in “just a few days” Ukraine will be technically ready to open all six negotiating clusters on EU accession.

According to him, the official screening of the clusters has been completed, and Kyiv expects to close the key blocks (including 1, 2, and 6) by the end of 2026 in order to be “technically ready” for membership by 2027. Zelensky also insists that a specific accession date should be written into a 20-point peace plan and calls EU membership a “security guarantee.”

However, claims of “readiness” look more like a political signal than an imminent reality. Even Zelensky himself admits that the problem is not Ukraine, but that not all EU leaders are prepared to support speeding up the process—hinting that certain countries are blocking it. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has previously noted that it is not yet possible to name a date for accession.

Skepticism is also being voiced in key EU capitals: at the end of January, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated outright that Ukraine joining on January 1, 2027 is ruled out and “impossible,” while stressing the importance of keeping the European perspective open for Kyiv. In other words, “technical readiness” does not remove the main barrier—political approval by all EU member states and the Union’s willingness to take on new obligations while the war continues.