BERLIN (Reuters) -German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Friday cast doubt on the possibility of Ukraine joining the European Union by 2034, saying accession was unlikely to come at a point affecting the bloc’s medium-term finance plans, which run to 2034.
“For us, the absolute top priority is, first and foremost, to do everything possible to end this war,” Merz said on Friday after a meeting with Romanian President Nicușor Dan in Berlin.
“Then we’ll talk about the reconstruction of Ukraine… but that’s going to take a number of years … It will probably not even affect the EU’s current medium-term financial outlook,” the chancellor said.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in Kyiv in February that Ukraine could join the EU before 2030 if the country continues reforms at the current speed and quality. EU leaders have also said accession to the EU would be the most important security guarantee for the future of Ukraine.
(Reporting by Andreas Rinke; Writing by Sarah Marsh)
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