{"id":373064,"date":"2024-06-25T19:21:06","date_gmt":"2024-06-25T17:21:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/2024\/06\/25\/ucraina-moldova-negoziati-adesione-ue\/"},"modified":"2024-06-28T12:36:54","modified_gmt":"2024-06-28T10:36:54","slug":"ukraine-moldova-eu-negotiations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/2024\/06\/25\/ukraine-moldova-eu-negotiations\/","title":{"rendered":"New historic day for Ukraine and Moldova. EU accession negotiations begin two years after application"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brussels – Now, the EU accession process for Ukraine and Moldova has entered the formal phase of negotiations, and from there, it can only move forward (the timing, however, remains to be seen). As scheduled after the green light for negotiating frameworks<\/a> by the Council of the EU, the first intergovernmental conferences with the governments of Kiev and Chi\u0219in\u0103u<\/strong> were staged in Luxembourg today (June 25), marking the official start of the final stage of the road to future EU membership for the two candidate countries.<\/p>\n

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\"Olha<\/a>
From left: Ukraine’s Vice-Premier for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, Olha Stefanishyna, and Belgian Foreign Minister and rotating chairwoman of the EU Council, Hadja Lahbib (June 25, 2024)<\/figcaption><\/figure>
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“The negotiations that we open today will be rigorous and challenging; with determination and commitment, we are confident that they can bring them to a successful conclusion<\/strong>,” was assured<\/a> by Belgian Foreign Minister and rotating chair of the EU Council, Hadja Lahbib<\/strong>, opening the two intergovernmental conferences before the handover to Hungary starting next Monday (July 1). Accompanied by the European Commissioner for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement, Oliv\u00e9r V\u00e1rhelyi<\/strong>, the Belgian minister welcomed first the Ukrainian delegation led by the Vice-Premier for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, Olha Stefanishyna<\/strong>, and then the Moldovan delegation headed by the Prime Minister, Dorin Recean<\/strong>. “This is a historic day,” Lahbib stressed at the two meetings, making it clear that “the path to get to this point has been challenging, and the determination to undertake the necessary reforms has been very impressive<\/strong>,” particularly in the case of Ukraine.<\/p>\n

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\"Dorin<\/a>
The Prime Minister of Moldova, Dorin Recean (25 June 2024)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/figure>\n

At this point, the EU Commission will need to continue assessing the state of preparedness of Ukraine and Moldova for the opening of negotiations in specific areas<\/strong>, identifying the issues that are “most likely” to emerge in the negotiations, “starting with the area of fundamentals which, in accordance with the negotiating frameworks, will be opened first,” the Council specifies. “This is excellent news for Ukrainian and Moldovan citizens and for the entire European Union<\/strong>; the road ahead will be challenging but full of opportunities,” is the enthusiastic wish<\/a> of the chair of the EU executive, Ursula von der Leyen<\/strong>,\u00a0 echoed<\/a> by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel<\/strong>: “We are witnessing a historic moment,” in which the two candidate countries “are embarking on a real transformation towards full EU membership<\/strong>.”<\/p>\n

There is great satisfaction in Kyiv and Chi\u0219in\u0103u over the milestone reached today. “When we signed the application for EU membership on the fifth day of the total war, many people said it was nothing but a dream, but we turned this dream into reality<\/strong>,” claimed the success with a long post<\/a> on X the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky<\/strong>: “The determination worked, it did not disappoint Ukraine and all of Europe, and it shows that all Ukrainians together, all Europeans together, are capable of realising even the biggest dreams.” Also Moldova’s President, Maia Sandu<\/strong>, celebrated<\/a> the formal start of EU accession negotiations: “Together, we are united for a future of peace and prosperity<\/strong>,” a future “within the same European family.”<\/p>\n