EU gives green light to accession talks with Ukraine after Orbán lifts veto

The 27 European Union leaders decided on Thursday to start membership negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova.

The bloc also granted Georgia candidate country status, as it had previously been denied such a title.

A clear signal of hope for their people and for our continent”, Charles Michel, president of the European Council, said.

Moreover, the EU “will open negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina after the necessary degree of compliance with membership criteria is reached”.

The European Commission will have to report by March on progress made by the Balkan country to set next steps, Euronews reports.

Thursday's progress, achieved during a summit of leaders in Brussels, came amid veto threats and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's Antagonist rhetoric.

In the days before the meeting, Orbán has questioned Ukraine's readiness to start negotiations and the Commission's credibility as an impartial arbitrator.

The enlargement is not a theoretical issue, it is a process based on merit, legally detailed, which has preconditions”, Orbán said after arriving Thursday. “If you have not met the preliminary conditions, there is no chance of starting negotiations”.

It was not immediately clear what made Orban remove his veto. The prime minister is believed to have abstained during the vote, which called for unanimousness.