Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

567. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the degree to which the EU continues to have positive discussions with the Ukraine with a view to some form of membership of the European Union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13909/23]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Ireland welcomed the decision of the European Council last June to grant EU candidate status to Ukraine. As I have made clear since the outbreak of the war, including in my own visit to Kyiv, Ireland fully supports Ukraine's application for EU membership.

In Brussels, we have worked with a group of likeminded Member States to propose a range of political and practical steps through which the European Commission might advance Ukraine's European perspective, as well as that of Moldova and Georgia. This has included advocating for targeted EU technical and expert support to develop national negotiating platforms and comprehensive communication strategies to inform the public throughout the accession process. At the same time, we continue to support programs across other multilateral forums, including the Council of Europe, to reinforce Ukraine's commitment to democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

As we await the publication of the Commission's report on Ukraine's reform process, we will continue to contribute actively to discussions in Brussels and elsewhere on how we can best support Ukraine's accession process.