European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday, 11 June, said that the European Union (EU) committee would meet next week to discuss whether a recommendation could be made to give Ukraine the candidate status to join the bloc.
"We want to support Ukraine in its European journey," she said while speaking at a joint press conference with Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy during her surprise visit to Kyiv on Saturday.
This was Leyen's second visit to Kyiv since Ukraine was invaded by Russia.
'Actual EU Membership May Take Years or Even Decades'
The recommendation will however be only the preliminary step in the long process before Ukraine gets EU membership. The East-European nation will be able to get membership only after all the 27 EU governments agree to give it the candidate status.
Following this, there will be extensive talks and debates on the reforms that Ukraine should adopt so as to get a membership.
Since Russia's invasion in Ukraine, Zelenskyy has been pushing for an EU membership to protect itself from Russia's attacks.
Even after getting the candidate status, it could take years or even decades to get the actual EU membership, said EU officials, as per Al Jazeera.
"You have done a lot in strengthening the rule of law, but there is still a need for reforms to be implemented, to fight corruption," Leyen told Zelenskyy during the conference.
"All of Europe is a target for Russia, and Ukraine is just the first stage in this aggression," Zelenskyy said, adding, "This is why a positive EU response to the Ukrainian application for membership can be a positive answer to the question of whether the European project has a future at all."
While EU members like Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia have supported the move, members in western Europe including Berlin and Paris are mulling over the possibility of starting the process.
Denmark considers that Kyiv has not sufficiently fulfilled the criteria to apply for EU membership. The country it said "would need to fundamentally improve its legislative and institutional framework," reported Bloomberg citing a diplomatic note.
Despite reservations from some members, the EU is set to approve Ukraine as a candidate at a summit on 23 and 24 June, albeit with strict conditions.
(With inputs from Al Jazeera and Bloomberg.)
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