European Union

Ukraine's path to EU accession will be difficult, but the European Parliament and the EU will help rebuild Ukraine's infrastructure and economy because Ukraine is Europe and Europe is Ukraine, said European Parliament President Roberta Metsola.

Portugal's Foreign Minister said that Ukraine's accession to the EU is of fundamental importance to Portugal because of potential economic opportunities, solving the food problem, and because Ukraine is a pro-Atlantic ally.

Ukraine is close to starting EU accession talks after fulfilling all the necessary requirements, and the negotiation phase is expected to begin in June, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

90% of the frozen Russian assets worth about €192 billion held in the Belgian securities depository Euroclear will be used to support Ukraine, while the remaining 10% will go to the EU, leaving a significant portion of the total €220 billion of frozen Russian assets in the EU financial system unused.

The head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, indicated what the proceeds from frozen Russian assets are proposed to be used for in Ukraine.

In the first quarter of 2024, the United States overtook China to become Germany's top trading partner with a trade volume of 63 billion euros, while China's figure was just under 60 billion euros.

Due to hostile shelling and damage to energy facilities, electricity supplies to industrial consumers were limited, and restrictions are still possible, and Ukraine received emergency aid from Poland, Romania, and Slovakia, which amounted to about 3% of daily electricity consumption.

Today, on May 9, Ukraine, along with all the countries of the European Union, celebrates Europe Day. The event was launched in 1985 during a meeting of the European Council in Milan.

Chinese President Xi Jinping made no concessions during his talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, despite efforts to improve tense relations over trade disputes and Beijing's support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The EU does not have an agreed position on whether or not to recognize Vladimir Putin as the legitimate president of Russia, but all 27 member states have recognized that the elections in Russia were not transparent.

The participation of several EU diplomats in Putin's inauguration in Moscow does not contradict the EU's agreed position on continuing to support Ukraine against Russia's illegal aggression, an EU spokesman said.

Serbia became the first European country to sign an agreement with China on a "shared future" and deepening of a comprehensive strategic partnership.

April 2024 was the hottest April on record, extending an 11-month streak of record monthly temperatures, indicating that the world is dangerously close to exceeding the 1. 5°C global warming limit set by the Paris Agreement.

The EU has started negotiations on the 14th package of sanctions against Russia, which includes restrictions on Russian gas, including a ban on transshipment of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) and restrictions on three Russian LNG projects.

Ukraine will involve MPs in each of the 35 chapters that form the basis of the EU accession negotiations, with MPs from the relevant committees participating in the negotiations on the respective chapters, a new approach compared to previous EU enlargements.

This year, the Ministry of Health is initiating intensified immunization activities to catch up with unvaccinated children as the number of refusers gradually decreases.

The President of the European Commission welcomed the political agreement reached by the EU countries to use funds from frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine.

The Kyiv City Council renamed Pravdy Avenue in the Podil district to European Union Avenue in honor of Ukraine's geopolitical, economic, and military partner, the European Union.

EU ambassadors agreed to use the proceeds of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine's recovery and military defense against Russian aggression.

Russia launched another massive attack on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure, prompting the EU to urgently call for the strengthening of Ukraine's air defense systems.

EU ambassadors agree on Ukraine's reform plan to receive EU financial assistance until 2027 under the Ukraine Facility.

EU ambassadors approve €30 million in non-lethal military aid to Georgia from the European Peace Fund.

EU ambassadors expressed concern over Georgia's law on "foreign agents" and its potential impact on the country's European integration process.

On May 7, passenger and vehicle traffic on Ukraine's western border increased compared to the previous day: 66,000 people and 15,000 vehicles crossed the borders with the EU and Moldova, with 38,000 people leaving Ukraine and 28,000 entering.

Since the beginning of 2024, Euroclear, the European depository, has received €1. 6 billion in interest income from more than €200 billion of frozen Russian assets.

Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonite says she is ready to send Lithuanian troops to Ukraine for a training mission.

The European Court of Human Rights has ordered Georgia to pay €153,600 in compensation to the victims of the violent dispersal of the Gavrilov Night rally in Tbilisi in 2019.

On the Day of Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in World War II, President Zelensky said that Ukrainians are once again fighting against the evil revived under the Russian flag, and only a united free world can stop it, as it did in 1945.

Euroclear will decide to confiscate 87-89% of the proceeds from frozen Russian assets worth €2-3 billion in the coming weeks.

Romania will consider supplying Ukraine with one of its Patriot air defense systems to protect it from Russian air attacks, President Klaus Iohannis said after meeting with US President Joe Biden.