Ukraine's accession to EU will take many years if negotiations start - Dutch PM

He told reporters in Brussels, UNIAN reports.

The head of the Dutch government was asked whether Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is really trying to block the start of negotiations with Ukraine.

"We'll see. I spoke to him on the phone this weekend. We continue our conversation. We have to find out how far we can go. I think it's crucial that we have a positive decision today on the next steps for Ukraine in the accession negotiations. In any case, it will take many years before the accession takes place," Rutte emphasized.

According to him, Ukraine has done a lot to start negotiations on future accession during the war. Rutte also added that Ukraine is fighting not only for itself, but also for the security of the whole of Europe.

What is known on Ukraine's accession to the EU

On November 8, the European Commission released a report documenting Ukraine's progress and recommending that the process of negotiating Ukraine's accession to the EU begin.

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said that Ukraine is successfully moving forward on the path of European integration and is fighting hard for European values, so Ukraine's membership in the EU will mean its final victory.

Subsequently, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said that he believed Ukraine was not ready for EU membership, but would not block the start of accession talks. At the same time, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for negotiations to begin by the end of 2023.

On November 13, members of the European Parliament called on the Council of Europe to decide on the start of negotiations on Ukraine and Moldova's accession to the EU at its meeting on December 14-15.

At the same time, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who arrived at the EU summit, said that his position had not changed: Ukraine is not ready to join the EU.