The EU and Ukraine Opened the First Cluster of Accession Negotiations: What Requirements Ukraine Must Meet

During the second Intergovernmental Conference in Luxembourg, held on June 15, Ukraine and the European Union officially opened Cluster 1 "Foundations of the EU Accession Process" (Fundamentals). This decision was a logical conclusion to the bilateral screening of legislation, which lasted until October 2025.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called this moment "a huge step forward," emphasizing that Ukraine has done its part of the work under wartime conditions. For Ukraine, this means moving from candidate status to directly working on the legal framework (acquis), which must become identical to the European one by the time of accession.

Structure of Cluster 1 and the Reform Roadmap

The "Foundations of the Process" cluster is the main stage of accession negotiations to the EU. It includes areas that Brussels considers key for membership:

• judicial system and fundamental rights,
• justice, freedom, and security,
• public procurement,
• statistics,
• financial control,
• functioning of democratic institutions and public administration reform.

A feature of this cluster is the principle "First open, last closed," meaning this cluster opens first and closes last. This means negotiations on it start at the beginning of the accession process and finish only at the end. Progress in the rule of law, anti-corruption, and public administration reforms will largely determine the pace of Ukraine's advancement toward EU membership.

529 Steps to the Goal: Main Directions of Reforms

Ukraine has already formed a Rule of Law Roadmap containing 124 strategic outcomes and 529 specific measures with clear deadlines until the end of 2027.

Judicial System: by the end of 2026, it is planned to fill at least 70% of court vacancies through transparent competitions involving the Public Integrity Council. Full digitalization of courts is also planned by 2027.

Within the first negotiation cluster, significant attention is given to judicial disciplinary responsibility as a key element of justice reform.

According to the Rule of Law Roadmap and the EU negotiation position, the main measures in this area include setting clear deadlines for disciplinary proceedings — from 6 to 12 months — and the need to improve the disciplinary framework itself.

Anti-Corruption: The EU demands real convictions in top corruption cases. The European Union expects Ukraine to increase by at least 10% the share of executed decisions in cases against the state compared to the 2022–2024 period. Among technical conditions are granting the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAP) autonomous rights for international cooperation and creating a dedicated communication interception system for the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) by the end of 2026.

Law Enforcement and Security Reform: transformation of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) into a counterintelligence and cyber defense agency with the transfer of economic crime investigation functions to other bodies.

Comprehensive reform of the State Bureau of Investigations with the involvement of international experts.

Strengthening the fight against organized crime, human trafficking, cybercrime, and illegal arms trafficking.

Public Administration Reform: reinstating merit-based and transparent competitions for civil service positions, as well as completing the reform of the civil servants' remuneration system.

Full alignment of public procurement legislation with the EU, including defense, energy, and concessions sectors, ensuring their transparency.

Ensuring macro-financial stability and combating the informal economy.

Media and Democracy: The European Union calls for increased transparency in party financing and a gradual move away from the "Unified Telethon" format to ensure informational diversity.

During the intergovernmental conference, Ukraine confirmed its readiness to implement EU law (acquis) in its current version without requests for special conditions, exceptions, or transitional periods within Cluster 1. This approach means negotiations on this direction will be conducted on terms common to all candidate countries.

Next Stages of the Negotiation Process

The opening of Cluster 1 launches the practical stage of the negotiation process regarding Ukraine's EU membership. Ukraine has already received a list of benchmarks, the fulfillment of which will be necessary for further progress in negotiations.

Among the nearest steps is sectoral integration. Ukraine plans to advance toward participation in certain EU programs and policies in parallel with implementing reforms.

The government expects to start negotiations on other directions, including the internal market and "green" transformation, already in summer 2026.

The European Commission will conduct regular assessments of the implementation of roadmaps. The pace of the negotiation process will directly depend on the results of Ukraine's fulfillment of its commitments.

Read about the steps Ukraine has already taken in the first year of implementing the Rule of Law Roadmap in the article by the "Judicial and Legal Newspaper" "77 Reforms in a Year: How the Judicial System Was Updated and the Role of NABU and SAP Strengthened"

The opening of Cluster 1 shifts the eurointegration process from the stage of political declarations to the practical implementation of reforms. This primarily concerns changes in the rule of law, functioning of state institutions, anti-corruption efforts, and improving the efficiency of public administration. Progress in meeting the requirements of Cluster 1 will subsequently be taken into account when assessing key legislative and institutional changes, which will determine Ukraine's further advancement toward EU membership.

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