Volodymyr Zelensky hails a “historic day” after the official opening of Ukraine’s accession negotiations to the European Union

The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen also welcomed this “good news”.

“Historic moment” for the President of the European Council Charles Michel, “historic day” for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky: there was no shortage of superlatives to greet the opening of these impatiently awaited negotiations in kyiv, more than two years after the start of the Russian invasion.

The European Union officially launched accession negotiations with Ukraine on Tuesday June 25 in Luxembourg, countries at war since the Russian invasion of February 24, 2022. “A strong Ukraine is not possible without the EU, and a strong EU is not possible without Ukraine either”declared Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Chmygal, at the opening of the negotiations.

“The accession negotiations we open today (Tuesday) will be rigorous and demanding. With determination and commitment, we are confident in your ability to reach a positive conclusion”declared for her part the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs Hadja Lahbib, whose country currently chairs the Council of the EU, which brings together the member states.

The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen also welcomed this “good news”. Only Budapest showed its disapproval, reminding Luxembourg on Tuesday that Ukraine was still “very far” to meet all the criteria before being able to join the Twenty-Seven, according to Hungarian Minister of European Affairs Janos Boka.

The opening of these negotiations is the result of an agreement obtained hard by 26 EU countries, which were forced to compete in ingenuity to convince the 27th, Viktor Orban’s Hungary, not to block the process. This membership process should not be completed for several months. The European executive has demanded measures from kyiv to fight corruption and the influence of oligarchs. The Commission also asked for better consideration of minorities, a measure insisted on by Budapest due to the presence of a Hungarian community in Ukraine.