Hungary Did Not Oppose Providing Ukraine with Benchmarks for Recent Negotiation Clusters – Kachka

Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, Taras Kachka, addressed the media during a press conference, revealing that Hungary has not opposed the provision of benchmarks that serve as criteria for fulfilling the requirements of the last three negotiation clusters related to Ukraine's accession to the European Union.

Kachka highlighted that on March 17, Ukraine received the second part of the benchmarks concerning three clusters – 3, 4, and 5. These benchmarks are essential for Ukraine's continued progress on the path to European integration. He pointed out that it was noteworthy that the Hungarian Minister for Europe, Janos Boka, was present at this meeting and, despite his participation, did not express any objections regarding the support for these benchmarks.

“We believe that he also contributed to their transfer to us, even though he discussed other issues,” Kachka emphasized while commenting on the laws passed by the parliament earlier this week.

The Deputy Prime Minister also noted that at this moment, the political process appears to indicate that no one expects a formal opening of the clusters, and all participants are awaiting progress from Ukraine in meeting the established benchmarks. This suggests that Ukraine is actively working to fulfill the EU's requirements, which is a significant step towards European integration.

On March 17, Ukraine unofficially received benchmarks from the European Union concerning the last three of the six negotiation clusters. Thus, Kyiv now unofficially possesses all six negotiation clusters, which include: the first cluster (foundations for EU accession), the second cluster (internal market), the third cluster (competitiveness and inclusive growth), the fourth cluster (green agenda and sustainable connectivity), the fifth cluster (resources, agriculture, and cohesion), and the sixth cluster (external relations).

On March 19, the European Council confirmed progress in the technical work related to the opening of negotiation clusters concerning Ukraine's EU membership. It also emphasized the urgent need to officially open these clusters, which is a crucial step for Ukraine's further advancement towards European integration. These developments indicate robust support from the EU in Ukraine's integration process and a readiness to cooperate in fulfilling the necessary conditions for accession to the European Union.