EU grants Ukraine membership talks but can't agree financial aid

FILE PHOTO: European Union flags fly outside the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium September 19, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -European Union leaders agreed to open membership talks with Ukraine even as it continues to fight Russia's invasion, but they could not agree on a 50 billion euro package of financial aid for Kyiv due to opposition from Hungary.

At a summit in Brussels, other leaders bypassed objections from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban by getting him to leave the room while they took the historic step of agreeing to start accession negotiations with a country at war.