EU Summit: European Council Decides to Begin Accession Negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova

Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, announced that the European Council has decided to initiate accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova.

"The EUCO has granted candidate status to Georgia. The EU will start negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina once the necessary level of compliance with membership criteria is achieved, inviting the Commission to report by March for such a decision. A clear signal of hope for their people and for our continent," stated the head of the European Council.

The opening of accession negotiations for new countries requires the agreement of all EU leaders, including Hungary, which has previously expressed disagreement with such a decision.

This morning, EU leaders attempted to persuade Orban on the necessity of supporting Ukraine. Following this, the Hungarian leader stated that he does not oppose Ukraine's accession to the EU, but "does not see a reason" for negotiations.

Earlier, the EU announced the unfreezing of 10 billion euros for Hungary, which had been withheld due to widespread corruption and legislative non-compliance in the country. Orban, in turn, had been blackmailing the EU with further blocking of aid to Ukraine if Hungary did not receive at least part of these funds.

It is worth noting that today in Brussels, a two-day summit of European Union leaders began. Participants plan to discuss the future budget strategy of the EU. After member countries adopted a long-term budget for 2021-2027 in 2020, an unexpected deficit of funds emerged. The funding deficit is associated with new challenges for Europe and the world, particularly regarding security issues.

Also on the agenda is the allocation of 50 billion euros to Ukraine in the form of loans and grants. These funds will cover the country's urgent needs and support its recovery, reconstruction, and modernization.

Earlier, in June 2023, at the summit in Brussels, the European Council granted Ukraine candidate status for EU membership. Subsequently, Kyiv pledged to implement a series of crucial reforms related to the rule of law and combating the influence of oligarchs and corruption.

After a series of compliance checks on November 8, 2023, the European Commission officially recommended to the European Council to start the negotiation process for Ukraine's accession to the EU. Later, Ursula von der Leyen stated that Ukraine has fulfilled "almost" all EU requirements to begin accession negotiations