After the opening of the path to the European Union for Ukraine, the question arises of what to do next

After the efforts of legislators, now it is time for the executive to take the initiative and implement the laws.

The European Council summit on December 14 took a historic decision on Ukraine . But from the start of negotiations to actual accession, much remains to be done. And if Ukrainian legislators have actually done their job, now the stage of trade and economic negotiations begins. What steps should be taken to make the European Union even closer to Ukraine – Yaroslav Bozhko, head of the Doctrine Center for Political Studios, explained on Apostrophe TV.

A political consensus emerged within the EU, which made it possible to overcome Hungary's position. And Orban, instead of blocking the decision, left the hall before the vote. And the consensus comes from the European environment. Berlin, Paris, Brussels at the highest level decided that it was time to move forward with this process.

As for Ukraine's seven steps that needed to be completed. This is a formal criterion, but it is not the background to the consensus, but rather the geopolitical situation that is developing in Europe.

Our potential entry into the EU is largely based on the implementation of the Association Agreement, which was written more than 10 years ago, then postponed, but eventually signed. That is, in essence, the array of obligations that Ukraine had to undertake in the legislative sphere has already been practically fulfilled. Further, the negotiation process is no longer based on legislative activity, but on intergovernmental coordination. Issues of trade quotas, various export and other restrictions are being resolved. Because by joining the European Union, we are one way or another joining a large common market, which must be settled in advance on both sides.

Relatively speaking, trade and economic negotiations will continue to be the main work for both sides, because the legislative stage has ended and the executive stage, so to speak, begins. The implementation of the government stage involves balancing indicators, that is, understanding where Europe can give in and where we must give in. And after this stage is completed, it will be possible to say that symbolic aspects remain.

In general, joining the EU is not a story about being a very highly developed state, as we think. This is a false idea. First of all, you need to comply with European standards. Not to reach a certain abstract level, but to resolve the issue the way it is done in Europe. That is, to be intercompatible as a system. After all, not very rich countries, such as Bulgaria and Romania, were also admitted to the European Union. And Poland at the time of adoption was not as rich as we see now.

And to a large extent, the EU has special co-financing mechanisms designed to bring newly joined EU members - which are less developed - up to the chamber average at the expense of richer EU members. Therefore, for example, the issue of living standards and some additional subsidies for Ukraine will be resolved jointly. And to a large extent, this is the reason for our accession to the EU, beyond certain abstractions about the civilizational choice and ideological path of Ukraine. Because joining the EU is always a booster, which provides you with huge funding for the development of your regions, various industries, for example, support for agriculture.

As for border security, this is a requirement, let’s say, of a customs nature. And here the key question is whether the turnover is controlled, whether Ukraine will be a source, for example, of the import of smuggled drugs. And in order to establish this, certain general criteria for border protection are being developed accordingly. For example, our State Border Service has been reformed quite strongly in recent years and is approaching European standards. Therefore, there will be no strategic objections to Ukraine on the issue of border security.

Now there is no question of whether we are at war with Russia or not. Because it’s clear that where we border with Russia there are no crossings. But the Border Patrol still monitors smuggling attempts.