The head of the Czech Foreign Ministry called for admitting candidate countries to the EU one by one

 Candidate countries should be admitted to the European Union one by one, and not in groups, otherwise the more prepared newcomers “suffer,” Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said in an interview with the APA news agency on Saturday.

“Candidate countries should be admitted to the European Union one by one, and not in groups. Lipavsky spoke in favor of a “regatta model,” that is, a competition between candidates for accession to  the EU in terms of implementing the necessary reforms. According to him, the joint accession of several countries to the EU at once “will hinder (the development of) more prepared candidates,” the agency quotes the words of the head of Czech diplomacy.

Adaptation to EU rules and reforms are two “parallel processes,” Lipavsky emphasized. “We must provide a European perspective to every European country that wants it and fulfills the requirements,” the minister added.

At the same time, Lipavsky believes that Ukraine is a special case, since military operations are taking place on its territory. Ukrainians have chosen democracy and the “European way of life”, and therefore deserve all the support from EU countries, Lipavsky emphasized. He also recalled that the Czech Republic is actively helping Kyiv with the supply of weapons and humanitarian supplies. The Czech Republic also accepted half a million Ukrainian refugees, which, in terms of its own population, is the largest figure in the EU.

On Friday, EU member states officially approved the framework for the substantive start of accession negotiations between Ukraine and Moldova. Lipavsky also believes that one of the EU's priorities for the near future should be the expansion of the community to include the countries of the Western Balkans.