Ukraine plans to accelerate the reforms needed to join the European Union and receive a positive assessment of their implementation in the first half of 2027. This should pave the way for further progress in accession negotiations once the negotiating clusters have been opened.
Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi announced this following a meeting of the special IBAR Task Force working group in Brussels.
According to Koretskyi, the main topics of his working visit were accelerating Ukraine’s EU accession, implementing the necessary reforms and securing further financial support for the country.
Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk also attended the meeting of the working group, which was established jointly with the European Commission.
What Ukraine needs to achieve by 2027
The IBAR Task Force has been operating for a month. It brings together representatives of the government, parliament, the Office of the President, law enforcement agencies and independent judicial institutions.
Its main priority for the coming months is to accelerate progress towards meeting the interim benchmarks under negotiating Cluster 1, “Fundamentals.”
Ukraine aims to secure a positive Interim Benchmark Assessment Report (IBAR) in the first half of 2027.
According to the prime minister, the task force has already completed some of the measures scheduled for November during its first month of work. The next step is to maintain this pace and accelerate the implementation of further tasks.
Financial support and the Ukraine Facility programme
Participants also discussed improving the Ukraine Plan, which forms part of the Ukraine Facility financial support programme.
The discussions focused on ensuring that reforms are implemented in practice and that the necessary funding from the European Union is maintained.
Koretskyi emphasised that the Ukraine Plan helps translate the country’s EU integration commitments into tangible results.
The prime minister thanked the European Commission, European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos and members of the working group for their cooperation in fulfilling Ukraine’s European integration commitments.
