European Council President Charles Michel makes a statment to the media regarding opening accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova during an EU summit in Brussels, on Dec 14, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)

BRUSSELS/KYIV - European Union leaders agreed on Thursday to open EU accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova and to grant candidate status to Georgia.

The EU will also open negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina once the necessary degree of compliance with the membership criteria is reached, Charles Michel, president of the European Council, said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the decision of the European Council to open the negotiations.

"I thank everyone who worked for this to happen and everyone who helped. I congratulate every Ukrainian on this day," Zelensky wrote on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

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Zelensky also congratulated Moldova on the EU's decision to open membership negotiations with the country.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (left) and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky (right) give a joint press conference following their talks in Kyiv on Nov 4, 2023, amid the Ukraine conflict. (PHOTO / AFP)

Ukraine and Moldova submitted their applications to become member states of the EU in February and March 2022, respectively, and were granted candidate status in June this year.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that with the decision, the EU acknowledged the reforms Ukraine has made in recent years.

"A difficult path lies ahead. We are united and ready to pass it as quickly as possible," Shmyhal wrote on Telegram.

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban expressed his dissent, writing on social media platform X that "Starting accession negotiations with Ukraine is a bad decision. Hungary did not participate in the decision."

ALSO READ: Hungary PM: Ukraine not ready for membership talks with EU

Separately, Ukraine received the third tranche of $900 million from the International Monetary Fund aid program to support its budget, the Finance Ministry said in a statement.

The funds allocated under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) would help Ukraine to cover the priority budget expenditures and ensure macroeconomic stability under martial law, said Ukrainian Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko.

"The EFF program will continue to form a solid basis for the development of the economic program of the Ukrainian government on its way to full integration into the European Union," Marchenko said.

In March, the IMF approved a 48-month EFF arrangement for Ukraine worth about $15.6 billion to support the country's economic recovery.

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Under the program, the East European country has already attracted $4.5 billion from the global lender.