(VOVWORLD) -The European Commission on Wednesday adopted its annual Enlargement Package, providing a detailed assessment of the state of play and the progress made by the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, and other Western Balkan nations, on their respective paths toward EU accession.
 Headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium. (Photo: Xinhua/VNA) |
The opening of accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova is an important recognition of their determination to pursue reforms on the path to EU accession, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The EC will open those negotiations in 2025, once Moldova and Ukraine have met all prerequisite conditions.
The path to EU membership requires a candidate to meet a set of criteria before entering into detailed chapters of negotiation – known as the chapters of the acquis – covering a range of issues, from economic standards to rule of law.
There are 35 chapters in total, all of which must be agreed to by all negotiating parties, including the 27 EU member states.
The process of opening, negotiating and closing all 35 chapters is expected to take over a decade for both Moldova and Ukraine.