Elections to the European Parliament have started in the European Union. At the moment, the "European People's Party", which clearly supports Ukraine, seems to be losing seats. Find out what to expect from the elections and what chances the right-wing forces have

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From 4 to 9 June, the European Union will hold elections to the European Parliament, which may affect the policies of the EU and countries cooperating with the bloc. Here's what you need to know about the elections and how they may affect relations with Ukraine.

Is the European Parliament an important institution?

The European Parliament is one of the three institutions of the EU.  The other two are the European Council, where ministers and heads of government meet, and the European Commission, the most influential body in the bloc.

The European Parliament does not create legislation, but it can initiate and adopt important declarations. It also plays a significant role in the process of adopting legislative resolutions that are subsequently implemented in the 27 EU member states.

MEPs also approve the composition of the European Commission, which drafts all new laws for 450 million Europeans.

Elections have already started

In Lithuania, early voting for the European Parliament elections began on 4 June, and the main day of voting will be Sunday, 9 June.

The number of MEPs from each country is proportional to its population. Germany, the most populous country in the EU, will receive 96 seats, France - 81 seats, and so on.

There may be fewer supporters of Ukraine in the European Parliament

According to the BBC, a week before the elections, right-wing, eurosceptic and populist parties, according to the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), were leading in polls in nine EU countries (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Slovakia) and were in second or third place in nine other countries (Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Portugal, Romania, Spain and Sweden).

In this case, the share of far-right MPs in the European Parliament may increase to 25% (they are expected to win 184 seats), while centre-left, liberal and green parties, on the contrary, will lose their mandates.

According to experts, the European People's Party will lose a significant number of seats after the elections, although the political force is likely to remain the largest faction.

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How might the elections affect EU policy?

First of all, analysts expect the European Commission's ambitious plans to combat climate change to slow down. This is due to a wave of large-scale farmers' protests in the EU.

Also, as noted by the US media, it is not yet clear how closely the countries are willing to cooperate in their defence projects. There is no unity among the right on this issue.

At the same time, EU leaders have repeatedly stated that they agree with the need to increase spending on the continent's defence, but the question of funding arises.

What about relations with Ukraine?

Some political analysts suggest that the situation with support for Ukraine may change, as right-wing parties often have more "pro-russian" views.

Meanwhile, other analysts make the opposite prediction. In their opinion, most MEPs of the new convocation are likely to support the continuation of financial and military assistance to Ukraine, but with due regard to the mood within their countries.

There are several examples of right-wing leaders in the EU who clearly support Ukraine. One of them is Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who came to power and provided Ukraine with air defence systems and other weapons from Italy.

In any case, the Ukrainian leadership will have to wait for the results of the EU elections to make a firm assessment of the chances of cooperation on various issues, including Ukraine's membership and defence assistance.

We remind you! Ukraine has already managed to launch effective strikes with Western weapons on russian territory. The first American missiles flew into russia a few hours after Washington officially authorised the use of its weapons. What targets have already been hit by the Ukrainian Armed Forces and how this affects the russians, we tell you here.

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