NETHERLANDS PERSPECTIVE

Amsterdam, May 21, 2026. Friedrich Merz has sent a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa to submit a new project: making Ukraine a 'guest member' — an associate membership — of the European Union. The German Chancellor presents this approach as a 'geopolitical necessity', while acknowledging that the ordinary accession process 'takes too long'.

According to the elements revealed by the NRC, which obtained the document, the proposed status would offer Kiev a carefully marked access to EU structures: Ukraine could appoint a European Commissioner and MEPs, but these representatives would have no voting rights in deliberations. Ukrainian ministers would be invited to summits and ministerial meetings — again, without deliberative voice. On the financial side, Kiev would not automatically benefit from the EU budget, in order not to disrupt the distribution of agricultural and regional aid. Direct aid programs would be set up instead. Finally, if the rule of law deteriorated in Ukraine, these privileges could be suspended.

The most politically significant element remains the security dimension. Merz proposes that Ukraine come under the protection of Article 42.7 of the Treaty on European Union — the mutual solidarity clause, summarized as 'one for all, all for one'. This would be, he writes, a 'substantial security guarantee' for Kiev, without precedent in European expansion history.

From the Dutch side, the reaction is more nuanced than outright support. The Netherlands is among the countries that have contributed the most in terms of arms, sanctions, and financial aid to Ukraine since 2022. However, according to the NRC, Amsterdam is part of the states that, without always formulating it publicly, oppose full and complete membership. The reasons given are structural: with over 40 million inhabitants at the time of the invasion — more than double the combined population of the Balkan candidates — and a lower level of wealth than Kosovo, Ukraine would weigh heavily on the EU budget. The balance of agricultural subsidies and cohesion funds would be radically disrupted.

In addition, persistent concerns remain about the Ukrainian rule of law and corruption, even if recent progress is recognized. The disappearance of Viktor Orbán from the European scene has certainly lifted the main Hungarian hurdle that blocked each step towards membership.