Ukraine’s Minister of Justice, Denys Maslov, held a series of working meetings in Brussels with representatives of the European Commission and the European Parliament. The visit took place against the backdrop of the European Commission’s publication of its annual EU Enlargement Package, which acknowledged Ukraine’s progress while emphasising the need to accelerate reforms.

In particular, the Minister met with Michael McGrath, European Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law and Consumer Protection; Ana Gallego Torres, Director-General of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST); Gert Jan Koopman, Director-General of the Directorate-General for Enlargement and Eastern Neighbourhood (DG ENEST); and Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI).

A key focus of the discussions was Ukraine’s implementation of its EU integration commitments, particularly in the areas of the rule of law, judicial reform, the fight against corruption and the protection of fundamental human rights.

Particular attention was paid to accelerating reforms under Negotiating Clusters 23, “Judiciary and Fundamental Rights”, and 24, “Justice, Freedom and Security”, as well as to the work of the joint Ukraine–European Commission working group (FEAT). The Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, together with the Government Office for Coordination of European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, is developing Ukraine’s consolidated position within FEAT. This new cooperation format is intended to facilitate the more effective alignment of priorities, resolution of outstanding issues and practical implementation of reforms. The objective is to achieve the progress required for a positive assessment of the implementation of the Interim Benchmarks Assessment Report (IBAR) in the first half of 2027.

“We need to move from general monitoring of reforms to managing concrete results. That is why we maintain a single Monitoring Matrix for the Interim Benchmarks under Chapters 23 and 24, which is updated on a weekly basis,” Denys Maslov noted.

Another important area of the discussions was ensuring Russia’s accountability for its aggression against Ukraine. The parties discussed the development of the international compensation mechanism, including the establishment of the International Claims Commission and possible sources of funding for future compensation payments. The Register of Damage for Ukraine is currently accepting claims across all 43 categories, with the total number of claims exceeding 200,000.

At the same time, the Minister emphasised the need to ensure the full operationalisation not only of the international compensation mechanism but also of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine.

The return of Ukrainian children deported or forcibly transferred by Russia was the main topic of the discussion with Ilhan Kyuchyuk. The parties discussed the operation of the Register of Information on Deportation and Forced Displacement of Children and opportunities to strengthen cooperation with the European Parliament to protect children's rights and facilitate their return home.

The Ministry of Justice is responsible for maintaining the Register, while a specially established Interdepartmental Commission verifies and confirms the relevant information. The Register currently contains information on 20,651 children who have been deported or forcibly transferred.

The working visit formed part of Ukraine’s continued engagement with its European partners on implementing priority reforms, advancing towards EU membership and ensuring Russia’s accountability for the consequences of its armed aggression.