The Council of the EU officially approved the start of negotiations on joining the European Union with Ukraine and Moldova.
Points of attention
- Accession to the EU will open opportunities for stability, prosperity and improvement of the quality of life of citizens of Ukraine and Moldova.
- Ukraine and the European Commission have extended the "transport visa-free" term, which simplifies road transportation between countries without additional documents.
- The updated agreement provides for mutual obligations regarding marking of trucks, transportation licenses and other supporting documents.
Joining the EU will open up new opportunities for Ukrainians
The first intergovernmental conference will begin on June 25.
The EU Council approved the EU's general positions, including the negotiating framework, for accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova. This paves the way for the start of negotiations on Tuesday 25 June in Luxembourg, the statement said.
🇺🇦🇲🇩 The @EU_Council adopted the general EU positions, incl. negotiating frameworks, for accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova.
— Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU 2024 (@EU2024BE) June 21, 2024
This opens the way for launching the negotiations on Tuesday 25 June in Luxembourg:
· 15:30 - IGC with Ukraine
· 18:00 - IGC with Moldova pic.twitter.com/A2c8bPpIgS
The country's president, Maia Sandu, also announced the start of negotiations on Moldova's accession to the EU.
Becoming a member of the EU is our way to peace, prosperity and a better life for all citizens. We wish our delegation the best of luck as they officially open negotiations in Luxembourg next week.
Maia Sandu
President of Moldova
Today, I signed the Decree on initiating Moldova's EU accession negotiations. Becoming an EU member is our path to peace, prosperity, and a better life for all citizens.
— Maia Sandu (@sandumaiamd) June 21, 2024
Wishing our delegation every success as they officially launch negotiations in Luxembourg next week. pic.twitter.com/1ze5UNb7rm
Ukraine, EU Commission extended the "transport visa-free" period
Ukraine and the European Commission extended the "transport visa-free" period for one year, with the possibility of an automatic extension until the end of 2025.
It is noted that the agreement was signed in Brussels with the bilateral participation of representatives of Ukraine and the EU.
Therefore, truck transportation from Ukraine to the EU and from the European Union to Ukraine will no longer require special permits.
In particular, the updated Agreement provides for a number of mutual obligations regarding the availability of licenses for the transportation and marking of trucks. That is, everyone who performs transportation following the Agreement about:
marking of trucks carrying out transportation by the Agreement need for all drivers to have a license for transportation or other supporting documents during transportation;
the obligation for carriers following empty goods to have supporting documents for the goods they plan to bring.
