How Ukraine's scores on the path to the EU changed
In 2026, the European Commission assessed Ukraine's readiness across five of the 33 negotiating chapters at a level sufficient for EU accession. Despite a slowdown in reforms, scores rose across all "fundamental" chapters, which are of key importance for the negotiations.
Source: European Pravda, with reference to a document cited in the article A record EU assessment despite stalled reforms: what's behind Brussels' optimism on Ukraine
Details: The European Commission annually assesses candidate states regarding alignment with EU law, as well as the speed of reforms carried out. This year, a paradoxical situation arose in Ukraine. The European Commission acknowledges that reforms have significantly slowed down – yet Ukraine's readiness for accession has grown the most across all years.
EC methodology shows that the level of readiness ranges from the lowest indicator of "early stage" (one in the table) to "good level of preparation" (four) or "well advanced" (five). Scores of four and five are considered sufficient for accession.
In 2026, Ukraine received fours across five of the 33 negotiating chapters (last year it was across four), with another one approaching this level. A one, i.e. the lowest score, remained across three chapters, the same as last year.
Importantly, this year's score rose across all "fundamental" chapters, which are critically important for the negotiations.
In the article, European Pravda explains that this growth does not always reflect the progress of reforms carried out by the authorities.
In particular, Brussels acknowledged that regarding anti-corruption, the score rose not thanks to, but in spite of the actions of the authorities.
On the 2025 European integration rating, read last year's article: Ukraine warned but not punished: EU report assesses reforms and failures, setting the bar for Kyiv
European Pravda is also preparing a comparison with other candidate states.
Your support on Patreon helps us keep the news free and accessible.