Zelenskyy and Ursula von der Leyen had a conversation on December 10th
Photo: President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Getty Images)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, ahead of the EU summit, according to the statement of the Head of the state.
"I maintain constant contact with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. In a phone conversation, we coordinated our positions ahead of the European Council meeting," he reported.
Zelenskyy thanked von der Leyen for the high assessment of Ukraine's work in implementing all the recommendations of the European Commission.
"We expect a positive decision regarding the allocation of 50 billion euros and the start of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU. Europe must decisively defend its values and unity. I know that we can count on the support of Madam President in this," he added.
Negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU
In early November, the European Commission recommended starting negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the European Union. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó immediately stated that Budapest is against opening dialogue.
At the same time, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán urged EU officials not to raise the issue of Ukraine's accession to the bloc at the upcoming summit. Furthermore, the Hungarian Prime Minister threatens to block the decision to start negotiations on Ukraine's Eurointegration at the EU summit scheduled for December 14-15.
For more details on why Hungary is blocking the start of Ukraine's accession negotiations with the EU, refer to the material by RBC-Ukraine.
