What happens if Ukraine joins the European Union

Ukraine insists: it wants to be part of the European Union. This was expressed this Tuesday by the president himselfVolodymyr Zelensky, before the European Parliament through a telematic conference. What would such membership entail? It is a step beyond the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union, an international treaty by which the country at war associated itself politically with the European Union.

Ukraine’s entry into the European Union would mean that the countries of the union would automatically become at war with Russia, well they must defend actively to Ukraine. This is how he picks it up point seven of Article 42 of the EU Treaty: “If a Member State is the object of armed aggression on its territory, the other Member States must help and assist it with all the means at their disposal, in accordance with the article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations“. In that epigraph of the Charter of the UN, this position is specified: “No provision shall undermine the inherent right of legitimate defense, individual or collective, in the event of an armed attack against a Member of the United Nations”.

Volodymyr Zelensky He is aware of this and that is why he has asked this Tuesday for this transition to be facilitated. “We are also fighting to be full members of Europe. Today we show the world what Ukraine is. Without you, it will be left alone. Please show that the EU is with us and that it will not leave us aside. life will conquer death,” said the Ukrainian president.

What is the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union?

Zelensky’s will is to expand the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union, a pact that was signed in 2017 and by which deeper political ties, stronger economic ties and respect for common values ​​between Ukraine and the European Union began to be promoted, as explained by the European Council on your website.

Despite this, Ukraine and the European Union already had a political relationship long before, since on January 1, 2016 it entered deep and comprehensive free trade area in force (ZLCAP), which modernized the Ukrainian economy. Furthermore, in 2014 they signed an Association Agreement which, according to the European Council, “fomented deeper political ties, stronger economic relations and respect for common values”.

When could Ukraine join the European Union?

Thus, the Ukrainian president has already formalized the request by signing a document with which formally requested the integration of his country in the group of Twenty-seven. Now all that remains is for the processes of the European Treaties to be fulfilled and for their candidacy to be examined, since it is a process open to any European country that complies with and promotes the fundamental values ​​of the EU. This is how he picks it up Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union: “Any European state that respect the values ​​mentioned in Article 2 and undertakes to promote them may apply to become a member of the Union”. That is, those of “respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities”.

Therefore, the steps to follow are the following. Once this request has been published, the European Parliament and the national Parliaments will be “informed of it”. “The requesting State shall address its request to the Council, which shall act unanimously after having consulted the Commission and after obtaining the approval of the European Parliament“, indicates Article 49. In addition, given the crisis situation that Ukraine is experiencing right now, the deadlines for the assessment of this request could be significantly shortened. Thus, the opinion of the Commission, a phase that usually requires a deadline between 15 and 18 months, it can be lengthened or, “significantly shorter” based on “political” considerations.