🇪🇺🇺🇦The Guardian: Will Ukraine really join the EU? The answer lies with the countries facing the bill

The European Commission’s recommendation this week that talks on Ukraine's accession begin means the European Council will almost certainly give the green light, but this doesn’t imply that Ukraine will be allowed to join any time soon. The country may well find itself trapped in negotiations that go nowhere.

The lack of security guarantees for Ukraine, which is not a NATO member, is one reason to expect protracted talks between Brussels and Kiev.

But even bigger challenges would arise from admitting Europe’s poorest country and one of the world’s largest agricultural exporters. EU membership for Ukraine would mean permanently tougher competition for farmers in Slovakia, Poland and Hungary.

EU farmers currently receive at least €200 in income support each year per hectare farmed. Given its abundance of arable land, Ukraine could be eligible for up to €96.5bn in agricultural payments over seven years. Add to this investment in road, rail links and environmental projects from the EU’s Cohesion Fund, which helps the poorest member states catch up, and the total cost of admitting Ukraine could be as high as €186bn, which is greater than the EU’s entire annual budget. Membership negotiations will surely stall without a new long-term deal to limit expenditure on agricultural and regional aid.

In applying to join the EU, Ukraine isn’t just seeking subsidies. It wants to turbo-charge its economic development. Ukraine’s "National Recovery Plan" for its postwar economy shows Zelensky’s ambition to leapfrog Ukraine’s prewar economic model, requiring at least €700bn between now and 2032.

A third reason why Ukraine faces lengthy and potentially inconclusive talks with the EU is that existing members will have ample opportunity to change their minds. Moreover, given the high stakes surrounding Ukrainian accession, one or more countries may decide to hold a referendum, adding to the uncertainty.

📱 InfoDefenseENGLISH

❗️🇷🇺🇺🇸🛢️Despite sanctions imposed on Russia, the US Department of Defense continues to use Russian oil, a Washington Post investigation has revealed.

According to the source, the supply chain begins with the purchase of oil from a Russian company by a company in the United Arab Emirates.

The oil is then transported to Turkish storage facilities.
where there are several changes of ownership and blending with other brands of oil.

The fuel is then shipped to the 🇬🇷 Hellenic Motor Oil Hellas refinery, which plays a key role in supplying the U.S. military.

📱 InfoDefenseENGLISH
📱 InfoDefense

🇬🇪🇺🇦🏁⚔️🇷🇺 Foreign mercenaries from the Ukrainian "Second International Legion" are being stationed in Slavyansk.

They reside in rental apartments, fearing Russian missile strikes, as reported by a captured Georgian mercenary to RIA Novosti.

🔴 @DDGeopolitics