For the three Western Europeans, who at times found themselves at odds with their Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy because they seemed too equal in their response to the war, the journey was in a way a redemption. French President Emanuel Macron, in particular, would be foolish to come if he continued to question the candidacy status that Zelensky is urging the EU to grant. But bigger than any diplomatic mistake would be the deepest geopolitical mistake of hiding the candidacy regime. In the months since Ukraine applied for membership, days after the war, a number of doubts have been expressed. The candidacy status is merely symbolic. The road to true membership is long and labyrinthine. The EU would be dysfunctional with more members, so its governance needs to be reformed before accepting new ones. The argument that the EU is unlikely to let Ukraine join in the end, so it would be harsh and pointless to give in to false hopes, is the most cynical objection to the candidacy. But all this is so much red herring. Both the EU accession process and decision-making processes really need to be made more efficient – but that is no reason not to run. If nothing else, the start of accession talks with Ukraine is the best urge for the EU to put its mind to solving these problems. And if the candidacy status is indeed merely symbolic, its granting is inexpensive and its rejection will only expose the malice of the EU. At the heart of the debate on Ukraine’s candidacy is the difference in attitude. In a troubled world, should the EU’s goal be to isolate Europeans from problems at their borders or beyond? Or is it to use the powers of the bloc to turn these problems into something more favorable? This tension between insularity and commitment, or between adapting or influencing a changing world order, comes to the fore with the question of what needs to be done for Ukraine. The key to this is the position of France. Macron was constantly pushing for a more active EU to shape the world around it. But it stands in the French tradition to assume that external power comes from more internal cohesion. The French political establishment tends to push for deeper EU cooperation instead of expanding it to more countries. He has always regarded the latter as an obstacle to strengthening his influence as a medium-sized power by promoting it through the EU. Hence the insistence – most recently in Macron’s speech in Strasbourg last month – on overcoming the veto over faster decisions. Macron also called for a wider “European political community” for those who are not yet ready to join the EU or who will never be. In the case of Ukraine as well as the Western Balkans, French officials are quick to suggest that an EU with even more members today would be cumbersome to the point of paralysis. But Putin’s war against Ukraine makes that prospect unfounded. Not because the risk of difficulty is not real. But because the aim is to persuade other countries to adopt the European way of life and to limit the power of those who would undermine it, nothing promotes this goal more than to bind Ukraine irrevocably in the European system of rules. There has never been a better opportunity for such a thing, nor will there ever be. The Commission notes that Ukraine has already adopted a number of EU rules. Brussels’s extensive questions on the application were answered in record time, even under the pressure of war. Pro-Western Ukrainian civil society wants to use the candidacy regime to push politicians for more reforms. In other words, this is a case where a real impetus for enlargement would strengthen rather than threaten the French goal of a more dynamic EU. Tensions between means and ends in French thought still exist, but Macron’s visit to Kyiv may at least be a recognition of it. Along with the calls for further reforms contained in the commission’s verdict, it could give coverage to other skeptical Member States to come to the same recognition. If this proves to be the case, it would be a good conclusion for the last summit of the French EU Presidency. [email protected]
