Zelenskyy rejects Merz proposal for associate EU membership
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected a German proposal to grant Ukraine “associate member” status in the European Union, arguing it would leave Kyiv without a proper voice in EU decision-making.
In a post on X, Zelenskyy said there can be “no complete European project without Ukraine” and insisted the country’s place in the bloc must be “full and equal”. He stressed the need to advance EU accession talks by opening negotiation clusters and pushing forward reforms aimed at securing full membership.
The proposal, put forward by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, suggested an intermediate status that would allow Ukraine to participate in certain EU meetings and benefit from selected institutions while falling short of full membership.
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola has also supported a gradual approach, arguing that candidate countries could be integrated step-by-step into the single market, customs union and EU programmes such as Erasmus and Horizon before full accession.
Zelenskyy, however, reiterated in a letter to EU leaders that Ukraine is already contributing to European security by resisting Russian aggression and should not be given partial or symbolic inclusion.
The letter, addressed to senior EU officials including European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, stressed that Ukraine is implementing rapid reforms while defending the wider continent.
Ukraine applied for EU membership shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, gained candidate status later that year, and formally began accession negotiations in 2024.
