BRUSSELS, March 22. /TASS/. European Council President Charles Michel expects that the European Union will formally begin accession talks witih Ukraine by the end of June.
He told reporters in Brussels that he expected the talks to begin during Belgian presidency, which ends on June 30, 2024.
"I sincerely hope that under the Belgian presidency it will be possible to have the first IGC [intergovernmental conference] with Ukraine," Michel said.
Michel, along with European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen, once again pledged to stand side by side with Ukraine.
At the same time, the joint statement, adopted by heads of EU states and governments after the first day of their summit, makes no mention of exact timeframes.
"The European Council welcomes the progress of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova in advancing on the necessary reforms on their EU path," the document says.
During the European Council’s meeting in December, when the decision was made to eventually begin accession talks with Ukraine, von der Leyen said provided that Kiev meets the remaining EU requirements, consultations may begin as early as in March.
Later, a number of European media outlets said the European Commission was poised to delay the start of the talks amid protests by farmers.
Accession talks do not set concrete timeframes for a country's admission to the EU, they can continue indefinitely. For example, talks on Turkey’s EU membership were launched back in 2005 and prospects are still unclear.