Ukraine moved another step closer to securing EU candidate status on Friday after the European Commission said the war-torn country was determined to meet “European values and standards”.
A week ahead of a European Council meeting to the decide the matter, the EU executive’s decision to recommend candidate status came a day after the leaders of France, Germany and Italy all declared their support for Ukraine’s EU accession bid during a visit to Kyiv.
“Ukraine deserves a European perspective. It should be welcomed as a candidate country, on the understanding that important work remains to be done,” said Dr Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president, sporting a yellow blazer over a blue blouse.
If leaders back Ukraine’s candidate statues, it would upgrade further EU political co-operation with the war-torn country. But Dr von der Leyen insisted on Friday that progress towards full membership would be “merits-based, it goes by the book so progress depends entirely on Ukraine”.
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Kyiv asked to join the EU just days after Russia invaded on February 24th. On Friday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanked the commission for taking “the first step on the EU membership path that’ll certainly bring our victory closer”.
Though he expects a “positive result” when the EU27 meet in Brussels next week, it will be many years before Ukraine joins the EU – if at all. Croatia spent nine years as a candidate country before joining the EU while North Macedonia has been waiting since 2005.
Despite backing from leaders in Paris, Rome and Berlin, leaders in other capitals – including The Hague and Lisbon – have aired concerns that the rush to grant candidate status will create false hope in Ukraine.
Commission officials estimate that Ukraine has achieved about 80 per cent of the fundamental rights recommendations by the Venice Commission. Further work remains to strengthen the rule of law, as well as legislation on oligarchs and anti-corruption efforts.
Nine years ago a presidential predecessor of Mr Zelenskiy pulled Ukraine back from closer EU ties, reportedly under pressure from Moscow, sparking the Maidan revolt.
On Friday, the Kremlin said the EU-Ukraine developments merited “heightened attention”.
“There are various transformations that we are observing in the most careful way,” said a Kremlin spokesman in a telephone media briefing.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has hailed Ukraine’s recommendation for candidate status as “historic”.
“If endorsed by the European Council, as I expect that it will, it will place Ukraine on a firm path towards EU membership, where it belongs,” the Taoiseach said in a statement.
As well as Ukraine, the EU’s executive arm has recommended candidate status for Moldova on the understanding that further economic, administration and anti-corruption reforms are implemented.
“It is on a real pro-reform, anti-corruption and European path for the first time since independence,” said Dr von der Leyen. “Of course, Moldova still has a long way to go ... but we believe the country has the potential to live up to the requirements.”
With 2.6 million people, Moldova is considered one of Europe’s poorest countries. President Maia Sandu welcomed the news as an “important moment for the future of the Republic of Moldova” that would “give our citizens hope”.
“We know that the process will be difficult, but we are determined to follow this path,” he added.
The commission recommended that Georgia be granted a European “perspective” rather than full candidate status, with a further review by the end of the year.
Amid intense pressure from opposition parties, EU officials are concerned that Georgia is backsliding on commitments to democracy and have demanded “an end to the political polarisation”.
“To succeed, the country must now come together politically, to design a clear path towards structural reform and the European Union,” said Dr von der Leyen, “a path that concretely sets out the necessary reforms, brings on board civil society, and benefits from broad political support”.
Sanctions
In Russia, president Vladimir Putin on Friday said a sanctions “blitzkrieg” against Moscow had never had any chance of succeeding.
Speaking at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, Mr Putin said the EU could lose more than $400 billion (€381 billion) due to the sanctions, which he said would rebound on those who had imposed them.
On Thursday, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia is “not ashamed of showing who we are” as the leaders of Germany, France and Italy visited Ukraine and offered it the hope of EU membership as it battles a ferocious Russian offensive in the east.
“We didn’t invade Ukraine, we declared a special military operation because we had absolutely no other way of explaining to the West that dragging Ukraine into Nato was a criminal act,” Mr Lavrov told the BBC.
“Russia is not squeaky clean. Russia is what it is. And we are not ashamed of showing who we are,” Mr Lavrov said.
Ukrainian missiles hit a Russian naval tugboat transporting soldiers, weapons, and ammunition to the Russian-occupied Zmiinyi (Snake) Island south of the Odesa region on Friday, the regional governor said. Odesa governor Maksym Marchenko identified the vessel as the Vasiliy Bekh.
The claim has not been independently verified, and as yet there is no comment from the Russian navy on the status of the ship.
Nato says it is committed to providing equipment to maintain Ukraine’s right to self-defence, and will be making more troop deployments on its eastern flank.
Nato’s secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, condemned “a relentless war of attrition against Ukraine” being waged by Russia, and said Nato continued to offer “unprecedented support so it can defend itself against Moscow’s aggression”. — Additional reporting: Agencies
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