Vilnius sent a letter to EU partners urging European capitals to “take decisive measures” to make Ukraine’s EU bid “real and irreversible”. The letter emphasizes that the moment has come to advance Ukraine’s integration, especially as Russia’s military aggression has intensified, and that Ukraine’s EU membership prospects could empower Ukrainians and quicken reforms. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has openly expressed anti-Ukrainian views and is blocking negotiations with Ukraine.
Consequently, Lithuania will propose during an informal European affairs ministers’ meeting in Copenhagen on September 1-2 that negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova on the first EU chapter begin without Hungary. The negotiations could proceed at a technical level with the agreement ratified once all 27 EU countries, including Hungary, approve it.
According to Politico, US President Donald Trump allegedly persuaded Orban to cease blocking Ukraine’s EU accession, and the process is expected to resume in the upcoming months.