The EU Working Party on Enlargement is scheduled to meet on 26 June 2026 at 10:00 in Brussels to discuss draft common positions for Montenegro and the outcomes of screening for Ukraine and Moldova, according to a notice of meeting and provisional agenda published by the Council on 24 June 2026.
The meeting will focus on Montenegro's accession negotiations, with an exchange of views on draft Common Positions for Chapter 8 (Competition policy) and Chapter 29 (Customs Union), based on documents WK 9131/26 and WK 9133/26. For Ukraine and Moldova, the agenda includes an exchange of views on the outcome of screening for clusters 2 to 6, covering a broad range of acquis chapters. The relevant documents for Ukraine are WK 8758/26, WK 8761/26, WK 8763/26, WK 8765/26, and WK 8767/26; for Moldova, WK 8760/26, WK 8762/26, WK 8764/26, WK 8766/26, and WK 8768/26. Any other business will follow.
The meeting advances the technical phase of enlargement negotiations. For Montenegro, which opened accession talks in 2012, the discussion on common positions for competition and customs chapters marks a step toward closing negotiating chapters. For Ukraine and Moldova, both granted EU candidate status in 2022, the screening outcomes provide a baseline for assessing alignment with EU law and identifying reform priorities. The Working Party's deliberations will inform subsequent decisions by the Council of the European Union on opening or closing chapters.
EU institutions and member states will gain a clearer picture of Montenegro's readiness in competition and customs policy, and of the reform gaps in Ukraine and Moldova. For Montenegro, progress on these chapters could accelerate its accession timeline, while for Ukraine and Moldova, the screening results will shape the pace and conditionality of their negotiations. The meeting does not produce binding decisions but prepares the ground for future Council conclusions and intergovernmental conferences.