Ukraine is set to officially begin membership talks with the European Union on Tuesday, which President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has hailed as a dream come true for his country’s population after more than two years of conflict with Russia.
Olga Stefanishyna, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, will lead the country’s delegation to an intergovernmental conference in Luxembourg to officially launch talks to align the country’s laws and standards with those of the 27-nation EU.
A few hours later, Moldova, which requested to join the EU following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and was awarded candidate status four months later, will attend a separate intergovernmental summit to officially begin its admission process.
Ukraine, too, sought candidate status in the days following Russia’s invasion. By June 2022, EU leaders had swiftly declared it official. However, things have moved more slowly since then, and membership may take years if at all.
“Generations of our people are realising the European dream. Ukraine is returning to Europe”, Zelenskyy wrote in an online post after EU member states agreed on Friday to begin negotiations.
The intergovernmental summit on Tuesday signals the start of talks, but actual negotiations are unlikely to begin for some months.
Candidate nations must align their laws and standards with those of the EU in 35 policy areas known as chapters, ranging from free trade in fisheries, taxation, energy, and the environment to judicial rights and security.
Ukraine, which borders EU members Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania, would overtake France as the bloc’s largest member if it entered, shifting its centre of gravity eastward. As a leading grain producer, its admission would have a significant impact on EU agriculture policy.
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