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BRUSSELS — European Council President Charles Michel said he is still working on “Plan A” when it comes to giving the green light to opening accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova and granting Georgia EU candidate status, along with providing further financial aid to Kyiv, at a crucial EU summit in Brussels this week despite a repeated threat by Hungary to block the process.
Heading into the December 14-15 summit, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has demanded EU leaders avoid any decision on Ukraine’s coveted goal of getting a green light for membership talks even as the country fights Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Orban insists that a “strategic discussion” is needed first about Ukraine’s EU membership and warned that forcing a decision could destroy EU unity.
Decisions on the enlargement of the bloc and a review of its long-term budget, which includes 50 billion euros ($54.1 billion) in aid for Kyiv, must be agreed unanimously by all 27 member countries. Ukraine is counting on the EU funds to help its economy survive in the coming year.
“Everyone can see what is at stake and what are the positions expressed by the different countries,” Michel told RFE/RL in an exclusive interview.
“I think it must be possible to make an additional step. And I’m working on Plan A, not on other plans,” he added.
Talks on providing further economic and military aid to Kyiv and pressing forward on EU accession negotiations for Ukraine and other regional countries are expected to take the spotlight in the crucial two-day gathering of the bloc’s leaders.
Michel said all of the other 26 member states support further assistance to Kyiv, including the economic aid package, and he was quick to dismiss the suggestion that accession talks be postponed for the “strategic debate” Orban has floated.
“It will be a difficult meeting, and we must tell the truth because we have the support of 26 leaders out of 27, which is very good news,” he said.
“It’s the good news, the positive news: support from 26 leaders for more money for Ukraine, more financial support, and more military equipment for Ukraine. At the same time, we have one country, Hungary, which is expressing some doubts and some reluctance. We need to convince Hungary, and we are working on that day and night to prepare the European Council, and I hope we can deliver.”
“Today…there is [a] proposal on the table…the opening EU accession negotiations with Ukraine and with Moldova and granting the candidate status for Georgia and making some additional steps. It is important for the Western Balkan countries.”
The move could also mean the potential opening of accession talks with Bosnia-Herzegovina, something that Austria, Croatia, Hungary, and Slovenia have been pushing to take place concurrently with talks regarding the three other eastern EU hopefuls.
Michel admitted that it is “legitimate to ask for strategic debates” but added: “Since Day 1 following [Russia’s] full-scale invasion, we have had many strategic debates at the European Council level on Ukraine on the concrete modalities for our action to protect the European Union’s interests and values.”
Speculation has surfaced that the Hungarian veto might be lifted if Budapest secures a 10-billion-euro package from the EU budget that the commission has frozen over rule-of-law concerns in the Central European country, possibly giving Budapest the leverage it needs to get access to the funding.
The use of vetoes is something Michel also wants to discuss in more depth, he said, without providing details.
He acknowledged there are times when “the temptation to abuse the veto right and take hostage EU institutions and the EU decision-making process” arises.
“In my opinion, it is very important to take into account all the sensitivities around the table to include all the member states to guarantee European unity. But that shows what we are facing today.”
As for Ukraine financial aid, Michel said there is hope for progress, even if Hungary cannot be brought along.
As an example, he said, loans can be made to Ukraine — as opposed to outright grants — with the 26 EU governments backing those loans on a monthly or quarterly basis.
“I am very confident on the 50 billion for Ukraine,” he said.
But, he added, “I don’t say this is easy. We have still some conversations to make sure that we make a decision.”
“I’m very confident because I feel very strong support. I feel that European leaders do understand this…to make very clear with this decision that we support Ukraine in the long run.”
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