According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Russia will intensify its attacks in the coming days in view of the deliberations on his country’s application for membership of the European Union. “This week we should expect Russia to step up its hostile activities,” Zelensky said in his video speech on Monday night. “We are ready.” The 27 EU heads of state and government will decide at their summit on Thursday and Friday whether Ukraine will be granted candidate status, which is expected.
Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock spoke of a “historic moment” in Ukraine’s EU accession process. It must be clear to Ukraine that it belongs to Europe, Baerbock said the morning before EU foreign ministers began their consultations in Luxembourg. The same applies to Moldova. But it is also clear that there will be a difficult process before the two countries are admitted. This also applies to a reform of the European Union.
The naming of Ukraine as a candidate for EU membership would clearly run counter to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s stated aim of preventing the country from becoming linked to the West. On Friday, the EU Commission proposed granting Ukraine candidate status. President Ursula von der Leyen emphasized Sunday night on the ARD program “Anne Will”: “Ukraine has made enormous strides.” The country is a robust parliamentary democracy. At the same time, given the Russian war of aggression, there is also a “moral obligation” to support the country.
But it is also clear: “We want to see more reforms,” von der Leyen said. This applies, for example, to more rule of law, the fight against corruption and the influence of oligarchs. Negotiations on Ukraine’s EU membership are likely to take years, if not decades. During their visit to Kyiv last Thursday, the heads of state and government of Germany, France, Italy and Romania spoke out in favor of granting candidate status to Ukraine. Ukraine is part of the European family, said Chancellor Olaf Scholz.