The path that other countries on the way to EU membership took years to overcome Ukraine has passed in about a hundred days, despite the extreme conditions of a full-scale war. This was stated by Olha Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, during a meeting of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities held in Ivano-Frankivsk under the chairmanship of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

One of the topics addressed at the meeting was the preparation and launch of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the European Union.

The Deputy Prime Minister emphasised the high dynamics of Ukraine's integration and clearly defined strategic priorities, including the opening of negotiations on EU membership.

"We need to understand how fast Ukraine is moving forward, how high is the confidence of European leaders in Ukraine as a state. We owe this, in particular, to the resilience of state institutions despite the ongoing full-scale war," said Olha Stefanishyna.

She also highlighted the achievements in reforms, namely the implementation of the European Commission's political recommendations necessary for further progress towards membership.

"Judicial reform has finally taken place in Ukraine. There are still many steps to be taken to implement it, but the country has been striving for such results for decades. We have also successfully reformed the media market, and now there is no room for speculation about freedom of speech in Ukraine. The Verkhovna Rada has passed a number of important European integration bills. We have thoroughly prepared for the October assessment of the European Commission," the Deputy Prime Minister said.

According to her, political unity on the strategic course of the state is essential. "We must understand that there will be even more challenging tasks and decisions ahead. However, our unity ensures that we move forward, and we quickly find consensus on key issues," said Olha Stefanishyna.