On April 23, the European Commission held an explanatory session for Ukraine on the negotiated Title 10 “Digital Transformation and Media”. This is the first meeting between Ukraine as a candidate country and EU representatives dedicated to digitalization.
The European Commission’s explanatory sessions are part of the process of verifying the compliance of a candidate country’s legislation with EU law.
Support on the path of reforms
During the meeting, the EU side expressed its readiness to further support Ukraine on the path of European integration reforms. In particular, through the Ukraine Facility mechanism, which is a strategy for implementing comprehensive reforms and investments for the next 4 years.
100 acts of EU law
The European Commission also presented more than 100 acts of EU law, described the specifics of each of them and provided answers on the implementation of these acts.
The list of acts includes current EU legislation that Ukraine is implementing as part of the Association Agreement. It also includes acts that are at the draft stage but will soon be adopted in the EU and become binding on Ukraine. For example, eIDAS 2, the Artificial Intelligence Act, the Cyber Resilience Act, and the Cyber Solidarity Act.
Ukrainian delegation
The Ukrainian delegation was headed by Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation for European Integration Valeria Ionan. The delegation also included representatives of the Ministry of Digital Transformation, the Ministry of Communications and Information Policy, the National Commission on Television and Radio Broadcasting, the Ministry of Education and Science, and the Government Office for Coordination of European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of the Secretariat of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
“We continue our movement towards EU membership. In particular, in 2023, we formed a preliminary vision of the path within Chapter 10 “Digital Transformation and Media,” says Valeria Ionan, Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation for European Integration.
According to her, the final roadmap will be determined after the official screening. Therefore, it is important for the government to understand the scope of its obligations and enlist the support of the European Commission for further consultations. It is also important to develop the right ways to adapt EU legislation.
Digital transformation and media
The key topics of Section 10 include Digital Transformation and Media:
- EU’s common digital strategy
- electronic communications
- digital services
- data circulation
- trust services
- cybersecurity
- media
- semiconductors
- artificial intelligence
This summer, the EU is also expected to approve the negotiation framework for Ukraine. This is a technical task that sets out the provisions and principles for accession negotiations with each candidate country.
