EU Agrees To Open Membership Talks With Ukraine

The BBC reports:

European leaders have decided to open EU membership talks with Ukraine and Moldova and to grant candidate status to Georgia. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the decision, made at a summit in Brussels, as “a victory” for his country and Europe.

A spokesperson for Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, said that agreement was unanimous. Hungary has long opposed talks starting with Kyiv, but did not veto the move.

However, Prime Minister Viktor Orban posted a blunt message on Facebook: “EU membership of Ukraine is a bad decision. Hungary does not want to participate in this bad decision, and therefore stayed away from the decision today.”

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Leaders have decided to open accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova and to grant candidate status to Georgia.

A strategic decision and a day that will remain engraved in the history of our Union

Proud that we have lived up to our promises and delighted for our partners

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) December 14, 2023

The #EUCO decision to open EU accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova has been adopted.

I thank everyone who worked for this to happen and everyone who helped. I congratulate every Ukrainian on this day.

I also congratulate Moldova and personally @SanduMaiamd.…

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 14, 2023