Michael Emerson, a senior researcher at the Center for European Political Studies (CEPS) in Brussels, announced the relevant calculations regarding the cost of Ukraine's accession to the EU. According to his data, the accession of our country to the European Union will cost about 18.85 billion euros annually. However, the specific components of this amount were not specified.
These data were presented by Dr. Heinz-W. Strubenhoff during an online event on the topic "Challenges and opportunities of Ukraine's accession to the EU. What is worth knowing for agricultural and food policy".
Strubenhoff supported Emerson's view on the cost of Ukraine's accession to the EU, emphasizing the importance of this information in the context of an active discussion on the financial aspects of accession. He noted that the current funding under the Ukraine Facility program is 12.5 billion euros per year, noting the importance of taking into account the fact that Ukraine provides defense for the whole of Europe.
He also noted that the greatest advantage for Ukraine from membership in the European Union will be the possibility of free trade, since EU members do not pay customs duties and are not subject to customs control. Currently, Ukraine exports 55.2% of its products to the EU, and after accession, this volume may increase.
We will remind that as early as December 2023, experts of the German Economic Institute (IW) estimated the costs for the European Union of Ukraine's accession in the amount of 130-190 billion euros. According to the study, if Ukraine became a member of the EU, it would increase its contribution to the common budget of the group of countries by 17%. The multi-year budget of the European Union for the period from 2021 to 2027 is about 1.1 trillion euros.
