EU accession talks for Ukraine: Michel unveils possible start date
President of the European Council Charles Michel (Photo: Getty Images)
The European Union may begin negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the bloc in March 2024, according to President of the European Council Charles Michel.
"We will open negotiations and a report will be issued in March, and based on that we will make a decision in March," he has stated.
Michel has added that the start of negotiations is extremely important, and the EU wants to support Ukraine.
"This is extremely important we want to support Ukraine. This is a very powerful political signal, it is a very powerful political decision and today and tonight I think to the people of Ukraine – we are on their side and this decision made by the member states is extremely important for the European Union," he has said.
Responding to questions about how the decision was made given the threat of Orban vetoing permission for negotiations, he has referred to the rules of the European Council, which require unanimity when making such decisions.
"We worked a lot to protect the European Council. It was important no member states would oppose the decision and that is why we were in the position to make this announcement tonight," he has added.
The start of Ukraine's accession negotiations with the EU
On December 14, during the summit, leaders of European Union countries decided to support the start of negotiations regarding Ukraine's accession to the bloc.
Previously, there was a possibility that Hungary might veto such an initiative, but this did not happen. Journalists report that Prime Minister Viktor Orban left the room during the voting.
It is still unknown exactly when the negotiation process will commence.
