Brussels is preparing Plan B to side step Hungary’s veto of Ukraine’ accession to the EU, European Pravda reported on May 21. The initial legal steps have already been taken, though they remain undisclosed, according to multiple EU sources cited by the publication.

Ukraine was granted EU candidate status in 2022, but formal accession talks have yet to begin due to Hungary’s opposition.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has cited rule-of-law concerns and what he describes as Ukraine’s mistreatment of ethnic Hungarians as reasons for blocking the talks.

The essence of the plan is to use those processes that do not require unanimity of agreement by EU members to push the accessions forward – and where possible, in conjunction with Moldova, which is also seeking to join the Union. In those matters where unanimity is necessary for a final decision, the negotiations will be done in “parallel” by the other 26 members to reach agreements. Although these parallel negotiations will not be legally binding, they will carry significant political weight and effectively isolate Hungary.

It is hoped in this way Ukraine can progress rapidly towards membership, increasing the pressure on Hungary to make concessions at a future date.

Stripping Hungary of its voting rights

 

The EU is also considering stripping Hungary of its EU voting rights at the upcoming meeting on May 27, negating its ability to block the Ukraine accession process.

This is the nuclear option, say experts, as it requires invoking Article 7 of the EU founding treating that pertains to backsliding on the rule of law and also Article 2 that enshrines EU members commitment to uphold the, ill-defined, values at the core of the European project.

As reported by bne IntelliNews, removing Hungary’s voting rights is an extremely difficult process, fraught with legal landmines and would be an unprecedented that also threatens to tear the EU apart.

In particular, all 26 members states from the total of 27 would have to vote for stripping Hungary of its voting, leaving open the question of which way Orban’s ally, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, would vote. Lawyers have speculated that parallel motions could be launched to strip both Hungary and Slovakia of their voting rights simultaneously, which in theory would block the two countries from participating and vetoing each other’s votes. However, the EU lawyers admit that this procedure is not well defined in the EU treaty and would almost certain spark a big and long-lasting legal dispute with an uncertain resolution.

European ministers will discuss Hungary's status at a meeting of the General Affairs Council on May 27, the Council said.

Parallel track 

The parallel track talks could begin as early as August or September if ongoing diplomatic efforts fail to persuade Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to lift his objections to Ukraine’s membership.

“The essence of the idea is to make full use of the flexibility of EU law,” European Pravda reported. Under the plan, Ukraine would proceed with technical and legal steps towards accession where possible.

At the same time Orbán has sought to build a new far-right alliance in the European Parliament. He has worked with other nationalist and populist parties, particularly Poland’s Law and Justice (PiS) and Italy’s Lega, in an effort to form a new group, which is increasing in influence.

“At the same time as Moldova and the EU announce the opening of the first cluster (or clusters) of negotiations, Ukraine and the 26 EU states are [due] to publish an official statement that Ukraine has also completed all the work on those same clusters,” European Pravda reports.

The plan includes the potential convening of intergovernmental conferences, the institutional mechanism that formally drives the EU enlargement process. EU sources indicated that such conferences for Ukraine could be held without full unanimity. “The negotiation framework for Ukraine, approved by the EU, does not require unanimity to convene a conference and even obliges the EU to do so from time to time,” European Pravda said.

For Moldova, joint conferences could result in formal legal progress toward membership. For Ukraine, they would serve as political validation of reform efforts and underline that Hungary’s veto remains the sole obstacle to legal advancement.

Supporters of the strategy argue that once Budapest’s position changes, or a new government takes office, Kyiv could “quickly catch up on the missed legal steps”.

It is expected that Ukraine will need as long as a decade to complete the EU accession process, whereas Orban faces new parliamentary elections in April next year and in theory he will face at least one more election before Ukraine comes close to finishing its accession process.

Kremlin rebukes the EU

The Kremlin rebuked the EU for not following its own rules on May 22 and criticised the reported plans to initiate accession negotiations with Ukraine without Hungary's consent. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned that such a move would undermine the EU's legal foundations and harm prospects for peace.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow had taken note of discussions in Brussels regarding a possible workaround to Hungary’s veto of Ukraine’s EU membership talks and the so-called Plan B that would allow 26 EU member states bypass the need for unanimous approval.

“If such ideas are implemented, it will be one more example of how the EU is undermining its own legal foundations in order to pursue political objectives,” Zakharova said, according to TASS on May 22. “Brussels is making another step towards completely eroding the EU’s institutional framework and the norms on which its legitimacy is based.”

Zakharova said the plan demonstrated that the EU “is no longer even trying to maintain the appearance of consensus and collective decision-making.” She added that the bloc’s approach to enlargement had become openly political and confrontational.

“Such actions push the prospect of peaceful dialogue further away and show that Brussels is not interested in resolving the Ukrainian conflict through diplomatic means,” she said.

The Kremlin has repeatedly opposed Ukraine’s efforts to join both the EU and Nato, framing the moves as provocative and destabilising.