ISTANBUL

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday welcomed the start of preparations for his country’s talks on joining the European Union.

“I welcome today's start of substantial preparations for Ukraine's EU accession talks. The screening process, which lays the groundwork for the negotiations, has officially begun in Brussels,” Zelenskyy said on X.

He said the commencement of the screening process is the outcome of agreements reached with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on the sidelines of the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

“The thorough work of assessing the conformity of Ukrainian legislation with EU norms, the formation of Ukraine's delegation and our negotiating position are all ahead of us,” Zelenskyy said.

He added that he expects the full engagement of his government as well as the first intergovernmental conference to be held this spring.

Earlier, a Ukrainian delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna took part in an inaugural meeting in Brussels to launch the screening process.

The European Council paved the way for the expansion of the 27-member bloc in December, announcing the commencement of accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova.