Ukraine is an official EU candidate since June 2022. In mid-December 2023, the leaders of EU countries are meeting to discuss whether to start official accession talks. 

In this episode of the Sound of Economics, recorded on December 8 2023, Rebecca Christie invites Zsolt Darvas and Heather Grabbe to look at the timeframe for the talks, the procedures and the criteria needed for Ukraine’s accession into the EU. They also discuss the costs of enlargement and what it might mean for the EU. Finally, they acknowledge the necessity for the union to show its solidarity with Ukraine, by opening official accession talks, helping the country to improve and reconstruct itself; and welcoming it to the EU when it has met the accession requirements.