Europeans are unlikely to fear a potential influx of Ukrainians once the country joins the EU, as happened with previous rounds of Eastern European enlargement, since many Ukrainians have already successfully integrated into European societies following Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Jana Kobzova, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), said this in a comment to Ukrinform on the sidelines of the 4th EU Accession Exchange Forum in Kyiv, organized by the New Europe Center.
“I think your human capital is definitely an asset for Ukraine, net plus. It’s been amazing how the Ukrainian people who had to flee the war more or less integrated in the EU and they will be also the advocates, and they will be the ones showing the true face of Ukrainians,” Kobzova said.
She believes the displaced Ukrainians have shown that “there is nothing to worry about, that these are people that share the same values, fears and concerns so it is possible to work and cooperate together.”
While Ukraine’s agricultural power may pose an issue for some farmers across the European Union, the country’s human capital will not face the same level of politicized criticism when it comes to the public perception of Ukraine in European countries, the ECFR expert said.
“I think that will be less of our concern, because many of those people are already integrated. Of course, after the war ends, there might be some more migration, but I think some people will also be returning to Ukraine, so compared to key economic interests, I don’t envisage this to be the main challenge,” Kobzova said.
The 4th EU Accession Exchange Forum took place in Kyiv on October 21. The forum serves as a key expert platform for EU candidate countries, aimed at sharing lessons learned from accession negotiations and developing recommendations to make the enlargement process more effective.