When will Ukraine join the EU? European leaders to begin negotiating country's membership
EU leaders will begin negotiating Ukraine’s membership, in a victory for Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky.
Mr Zelensky described the decision as “a victory that motivates, inspires, and strengthens".
He added: “I congratulate every Ukrainian on this day... History is made by those who don't get tired of fighting for freedom."
The negotiations got the green light after Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, agreed to abstain from a vote. Mr Orban previously said he would block a deal with Ukraine and Moldova.
It has been suggested that Ukraine could be split into North and South territories, with most of the country being able to enter the EU.
Lord Ricketts, a former British National Security Adviser and ambassador, said the move could be "a turning point for European security.”
He said: “Even if the Russian invasion ends in stalemate and a truce and Ukraine divided, getting 80 per cent of Ukraine into NATO then EU makes a further war much less likely."
When will Ukraine join the EU?
It isn’t clear when Ukraine will join the EU, but the talks are expected to take years.
According to the Pew Research Centre, it takes countries an average of nine years to join the union.
Why has it taken this long?
EU officials couldn’t begin negotiating until Ukraine addressed several concerns, such as corruption and lobbying concerns, as reported by AP News.
But EU officials have said that Ukraine has made progress on rectifying these concerns this last year.
Which countries were in favour, and which were opposed up until now?
Every EU country was in favour of Ukraine joining the EU, except for Hungary.
Although the Hungarian leader abstained from the vote, the country also blocked a £43 billion financial package for Ukraine.
Mr Orban called the decision to open negotiations with the EU “irrational" and "inappropriate".
How many EU member states are there?
There were originally just six members in the EU. The founding members were: Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.
There are now 27 countries in the EU: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.
The UK used to be a member but left the union in 2020 following the Brexit vote.
Read More
There are currently nine candidate countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Türkiye, and Ukraine.
Who was the last country to join?
The last country to join the European Union was Croatia, in July 2013.
