European Council expected to back progress in Ukraine, Moldova accession talks

Leaders of EU member states will gather in Brussels on June 18–19 for a European Council summit.

European Council President António Costa sent participants an invitation letter outlining the agenda, according to Ukrinform, citing the institution’s press service, CE Report quotes Ukrinform.

“Ukraine remains high on our agenda, and we will start our discussion by hearing from President Zelensky,” he wrote.

Costa noted that Ukraine is achieving new successes on the battlefield, while Russia is failing to meet its military and strategic objectives.

“Russia’s increasingly reckless and irresponsible behavior towards EU Member States is unacceptable and signals the opposite of strength. Our two-pronged approach – supporting Ukraine and increasing pressure on Russia – is working,” the European Council President said.

He added that the summit will provide an opportunity to send a strong message of unity and expressed expectations that it would welcome the opening of the first cluster of chapters in accession negotiations for Ukraine and Moldova, marking a significant milestone on their path toward the EU.

“This puts an end to a long impasse in the accession process of those two countries,” Costa wrote.

He said that together with momentum on the Western Balkans seen at a recent summit in Tivat, the enlargement process has gained new impetus.

Costa also addressed EU defense issues.

“Recent drone incursions into EU airspace, including the crash of a Russian drone carrying explosives into a residential building in Romania, underline the urgency of advancing our shared defense readiness agenda, including by strengthening the EU’s Eastern flank. While progress has been made on defense spending and capabilities, much more remains to be done,” said Costa.

Leaders will also discuss recent developments in the Middle East, including the conflict in Iran and its broader implications, particularly for energy prices, as well as the situation in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon, along with EU efforts to support ceasefire initiatives and regional stability.

The summit will also address EU economic competitiveness.

“We will therefore start our meeting by reviewing progress on the ‘One Europe, One Market’ agenda,” the European Council President noted.

They will also assess progress on migration policy implementation to ensure faster action across priority areas.

The meeting will begin on Thursday, June 18, at 18:00 Brussels time and is expected to conclude after lunch on Friday, June 19.

As previously reported, leaders of the Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8), together with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, called for the opening of all negotiating clusters on Ukraine’s EU accession this summer.

Photo: António Costa / X