Ukraine Ready to Postpone CAP Benefits for Faster EU Accession, Aims to Sign Treaty Next Year

Ukraine is prepared to postpone receiving certain benefits from the European Union, specifically subsidies under the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), to accelerate its accession process. This was stated by Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Taras Kachka in an interview with Bloomberg.

According to Kachka, Ukraine could join the CAP later, possibly in the next budget period rather than the one currently under discussion. This would alleviate concerns about one of the EU's largest and most politically sensitive programs. Ukraine aims to sign an accession treaty as early as next year, depending on progress, after which member states would need several more years to ratify.

Previously, France and Germany proposed offering Ukraine «symbolic» benefits during the accession phase, excluding access to the bloc's common budget and voting rights until full membership. However, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that Ukraine is not interested in incomplete EU membership.