Switzerland has allowed negative consequences for the EU in case of Ukraine's accession

Ukraine's possible accession to the European Union (EU) will "blow up" the community's budget. This was reported on January 17 by the Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ).

According to the newspaper, Ukraine is a poor country with a large agricultural sector and the largest territory among the current EU candidates. GDP per capita, adjusted for purchasing power, is only about half that of Bulgaria, the poorest country in the association, clarifiesГазета.Ru ".

"With this combination, Ukraine can overload existing transfer systems and blow up the EU budget," the article says.

The newspaper emphasizes that Ukraine's integration will be a challenge not only for Kiev, but also for the EU itself, as it will require large-scale financial injections and reforms of distribution mechanisms.

NZZ notes that if a peace agreement is reached, the EU will face a dilemma. On the one hand, there are compelling geopolitical reasons to quickly consolidate Ukraine in the EU after the end of the conflict, so as not to "leave it in a gray zone." On the other hand, the EU's current criteria—based approach prevents rapid accession - the process can take many years, as it requires full compliance with the union's political, economic, and legislative standards.

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In December 2025, the Politico newspaper noted that during the period of 2025, Ukraine had made no progress on the issue of joining the EU. It was clarified that the "ambitious goal" of completing accession negotiations by 2028 is becoming unattainable for the Ukrainian side. However, The Washington Post pointed out that Ukraine could be admitted to the EU as early as 2027 in order to resolve the Ukrainian conflict.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also said in November that Ukraine did not meet any of the criteria for joining the EU. According to her, there is no democracy on the Ukrainian territory, as well as transparency of the judicial system and anti-corruption legislation.

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