The impasse on Ukraine's accession is so entrenched that diplomats in Brussels are mulling the idea of decoupling it from Moldova's bid, Euronews reports.
There are "no objective reasons" to prevent Ukraine from launching the first phase of its accession process, the European Commission has said in response to Viktor Orbán's veto, which the Hungarian leader reconfirmed during last week's EU summit.
"When a candidate country is held back for no objective reason, despite meeting the criteria, the entire enlargement process loses its credibility," a spokesperson for the European Commission said on Tuesday.
According to Orbán, 95% of almost 2.3 million participants who answered a recent national consultation opposed Ukraine's membership in the bloc. Turnout was roughly half the 5.5 million votes recorded during national elections in 2022.
Orbán cited the results when doubling down on his veto, saying during the summit: "I came here with a strong mandate."
"If a member of the European Union is in a war, it means that the European Union is in the war, and we don't like it."
