Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna is confident that Ukraine will meet all the requirements for the start of accession negotiations with the EU by the end of the year. She added the government has completed the necessary steps in seven relevant areas: the fight against corruption, the rule of law, the media, and reforms related to human rights and freedom. “The next step is the assessment of the European Commission and its further recommendations,” the deputy prime minister said. According to Stefanishyna, we will have a preliminary report from the European Commission in the spring. Based on that, all of Ukraine’s EU requirements will be fulfilled by the end of the year. ” We hope this will create the necessary political momentum to start negotiations,” she added.