Since Ukraine applied for EU membership in late February 2022, only days after the fateful Russian invasion of the country, it has made a relatively speedy start in its journey towards EU membership. The EU granted the country candidate status in June the same year and last December, it rewarded Ukraine’s reform efforts by formally granting green light to open accession negotiations.

While such negotiations can take years to conclude, the eventual EU accession of Ukraine could have a considerable political and economic impact on the European Union itself. This event will focus on the political, security-related, institutional, economic, and budgetary implications of Ukraine’s EU accession process and potential EU accession.

The event will first feature a presentation by Kristi Raik, deputy director of the International Centre for Defence and Security (ICDS), in which she will discuss the topic based on joint research by ICDS (Tallin) and CEPS (Brussels). Second, the panel discussion will further reflect on the potential impact of Ukraine’s EU accession process, before zooming into how the EU can prepare for potential further enlargement towards its east. It will thereby reflect on the reforms that could be required to make the EU fitfor30+, the state of that discussion within the EU, as well as the state of public support in the Netherlands and the EU for further EU enlargement. 

The event brings together policy and lawmakers, academic researchers and think tank experts, journalists as well as other relevant practitioners in the Netherlands.

Preliminary programme

• 13.30     Doors open, coffee and tea
• 14.00     Welcome by Louise van Schaik, Head of EU & Global Affairs Research unit, Clingendael Institute
• 14.10     Presentation by Kristi Raik, Deputy director of ICDS (Tallin)
• 14.30     Panel discussion
  • Esselien van Eerten, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of the Netherlands in Kyiv
  • Julia Soldatiuk, Research Fellow, Clingendael Institute
  • Veronika Movchan, Research Director, Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting (Kyiv)
  • Wouter Zweers, Research Fellow, Clingendael Institute (Moderator)
• 15.30     Reflections by H.E. Oleksandr Karasevych, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Kingdom of the Netherlands
• 15:40     Closing by Louise van Schaik followed by informal reception
• 16.30     End of event

The seminar is co-organised with the International Center for Defence and Security (RKK-ICDS).

Important information for participation

If you would like to participate, please contact Wouter Zweers via wzweers@clingendael.org.