Zelensky is reported in the Guardian saying:
Speaking from the embattled city of Pokrovsk near the frontline, Zelenskyy spoke about Ukrainian soldiers being “at war not only for the sake of their own families, their own homes,” but more broadly “for the Ukrainian future, the future of Ukraine in the European Union.”
“Ukraine is fighting for its independence, and our future is in the EU, which is the part of our independence … and for us, it is an important factor that we are highly assessed in this [report],” he said. [1]
This is blatant lying. How can the Guardian print it without putting Zelensky falsely claimed in front of it, I don’t know. Putin has said multiple times that he does not object to Ukraine joining the EU. (Of course, von der Leyen’s militarisation of the EU against Russia hardly makes that easier and could even cause Putin to change his mind; but, as of now, the Russian position is that the problem is NATO, not the EU). Not a single Ukrainian needs to die to get Ukraine into the EU. Yet; these lies just go unchallenged in the Western media.
The actual obstacles to Ukraine joining the EU are not Russia. They are: ‘corruption’ in Ukraine, the lack of media freedom and democracy in Ukraine and the lack of respect for minority rights in Ukraine, ironically enough. And, of course, the objection of EU member Hungary,
Update – running out of money and the need for some face-saving narratives
The depths of stupidity emanating from the EU Commission are quite something. For example, this is the EU Foreign Policy Representative, Kaja Kallas, reported by the Guardian:
Kallas, a former prime minister of Estonia, also said EU membership could be a “major security guarantee” for Ukraine and that no candidate country had ever implemented such sweeping reforms while at war.
Russia has indicated that one of, indeed the main, reason for the war, from their point of view was Ukraine being used as a Western security buffer or bulwark on their “porch” (Putin’s phrase). Currently, Russia’s position is that they do not object to Ukraine joining the EU. This has been re-affirmed as recently as September 2025. [2] But; if EU membership for Ukraine is going to be framed as a matter of “security” then that makes it harder for Russia to accept this. The more the EU leaders, especially von der Leyen and Kallas, frame Ukraine’s putative membership of the EU, (if Hungary ever lets them), as a military-security matter, the worse they make matters for Ukraine. The alternative, and more optimistic interpretation of this is that under the heading of “EU and NATO leaders are already looking for a face-saving narrative for when they quit Ukraine” part of the plan is to get Ukraine into the EU and then present that as a victory – just lie to everyone that that was something that had to be fought for.
Talking of the need for a face-saving narrative. That could come sometime early next year. This Reuters report details how, without the successful purloining of the frozen Russia assets, the available funding for Ukraine will run out in Q2 of 2026. [3] Currently the EU has promised to provide funding; but no one knows where it is going to come from. According to this report Ukraine needs $139 billion a year for both financial and military support. You can see why they are so desperate to steal the frozen assets. European countries just don’t have that kind of money. Even if they do steal the money, that would only postpone the problem for one more year. So; at least, one can take comfort when they lie about how Ukraine joining the EU would be some kind of a victory. It could mean they are preparing to manage the narrative when they lose. For their sake, let’s hope Hungary changes its position and Ukraine actually can join the EU.
Notes
- https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/nov/04/european-union-eu-latest-news-updates-live
- https://www.reuters.com/world/china/putin-says-russia-doesnt-oppose-ukraine-joining-eu-2025-09-02/
- https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/eus-frozen-asset-funding-ukraine-may-need-bridging-solution-dombrovskis-says-2025-11-04/