Ukraine to be invited to new EU+ summit in October
That’s according to Euractiv, Ukrinform reports.
According to an EU official, “invitations will be sent out soon” for the summit,, with leaders of the six Western Balkan countries, Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan expected to receive them.
The official said the main aim of the new forum is “to have a political discussion on strategic issues of common interest for the European continent,” the EU official said, adding that the main issues will include Russia’s war against Ukraine, the energy crisis and Europe’s economic situation.
As Ukrinform reported, on May 9, French President Emmanuel Macron announced an initiative to create a new "European political community" so that countries that are not formal EU members could join the new space in Europe. These include Ukraine.
On May 22, the French Minister for European Affairs, Clément Beaune, said that the process of Ukraine joining the European Union could last 15 or 20 years. He also opined that Kyiv should join the European political community, as proposed by Macron.
On May 23, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, stated that France's position regarding Ukraine is in no way an issue, and that an active discussion is ongoing between the two countries on what Ukraine's path to the EU will be like and how long it will take.
