The European Union formally launches accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova on Tuesday, setting the fragile ex-Soviet states off on a long path towards membership that Russia has tried to block.
The landmark move is aimed in particular at sending a vote of confidence in Ukraine’s future as Moscow has momentum on the battlefield almost two-and-a-half years into the Kremlin’s invasion.
“These are truly historic moments. Ukraine is and will always be part of a united Europe,” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said when the EU’s 27 countries last week signed off on starting the talks.
“Millions of Ukrainians, and indeed generations of our people, are realising their European dream.”
Ukraine — followed by its neighbour Moldova — lodged their bids to join the EU in the immediate aftermath of Russia’s all-out assault in February 2022.
The start of the talks in Luxembourg still only marks the beginning of a protracted …