On Thursday, the 27 leaders of the EU decided to begin accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova.

The decision marks a major milestone on Kyiv’s determined path to join the European Union once the conflict of Russia’s war is over and represents an endorsement by Brussels of the country’s Western trajectory. A deal was reached to begin the accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova after hours of talks among the EU’s 27 leaders.

The European Council president, Charles Michel, has announced that the bloc’s leaders have decided to open accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova. The decision came after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán chose to leave the room during the process to allow unanimous agreement, according to people who had been briefed on the talks.

However, the EU’s proposed support package for Ukraine is still being discussed at the leaders’ summit in Brussels, alongside a four-year, €50bn fund from the bloc’s shared budget, which has yet to be agreed.