Support for Ukraine’s Fast-Track EU Membership Falls Across Europe

Yesterday 18:15

By: Azzat Manal

Support for Ukraine’s Fast-Track EU Membership Falls Across Europe

Public support for Ukraine’s rapid accession to the European Union remains significantly lower across the bloc than among Ukrainians themselves, according to a new survey commissioned by Germany’s Bertelsmann Foundation. The findings highlight a gap between Ukraine’s strong desire to join the EU and the more cautious attitudes of European citizens toward accelerating the process.

The survey found that 83% of Ukrainians support fast-track membership, compared with 47% of respondents across the European Union. The results suggest that, although Ukraine’s European integration remains an important political objective, public backing for an accelerated timeline is far from uniform among the bloc’s population.

Germany illustrates this contrast. Despite being one of Ukraine’s major providers of military and financial assistance since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, only 41% of German respondents supported rapid EU accession. Romania recorded a similarly low level of support, at 40%. Sweden, by comparison, registered the highest level among the major EU countries covered in the report, with 69% in favour.

German public opinion has shifted notably since the early stages of the war. In 2022, around 60% of Germans supported Ukraine joining the EU quickly. Regular surveys conducted for the Bertelsmann Foundation have since recorded declining support, reflecting a broader change in attitudes toward the pace of enlargement.

Ukraine’s accession remains a declared objective of the European Union and is frequently presented by European leaders as part of the continent’s long-term security and political future. However, joining the bloc requires extensive reforms and negotiations, while EU members must also consider the institutional, economic and political implications of admitting a country at war.

The survey’s findings underline the challenge facing European policymakers: maintaining a strategic commitment to Ukraine’s European future while addressing public concerns about how and when enlargement should take place. The Bertelsmann Foundation argues that stronger dialogue between political leaders and citizens, alongside clearer communication about the strategic purpose of Ukraine’s integration, could help bridge the divide.

Commissioned by the Bertelsmann Foundation and conducted by the YouGov polling platform in June 2026, the survey included 16,795 respondents across all 27 EU member states. Its results offer a snapshot of public attitudes toward Ukraine’s rapid accession, rather than a direct measure of support for EU membership under every possible timeline or set of conditions.