Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine have said their signature of EU free trade treaties is a first step to accession.
Leaders of the former Soviet republics and the 28 EU states signed the accords in Brussels on Friday (27 June).
The move crowns seven years of technical negotiations and comes despite Russian efforts to disrupt the process with trade bans, gas disputes, and military aggression.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko used the same pen that his predecessor, Viktor Yan...
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Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's foreign editor, writing about foreign and security issues since 2005. He is Polish, but grew up in the UK, and lives in Brussels. He has also written for The Guardian, The Times of London, and Intelligence Online.