European Commission recommends granting Ukraine EU candidate status

The European Commission recommends that Ukraine be granted EU candidate status, a mandatory formal step before considering the issue at the European Council level.

This conclusion, or the official "opinion of the European Commission," was announced today during a press conference following a meeting of the European Commission's Board by its President Ursula von der Leyen.

The opinion of the European Commission was formed on the basis of Ukraine's application for EU membership and the analysis of two questionnaires, which assessed Ukraine's readiness to meet the so-called Copenhagen criteria of a developed democratic society and its compliance with the acquis communautaire.

Today, the European Commission simultaneously considered applications for EU membership from Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia.

The European Council will consider Ukraine's application for candidate status for membership in the European Union at its meeting on June 23-24.

Earlier, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Ukraine met the criteria for candidate status, but there were still skeptics in Europe trying to find an alternative.

"I would like to thank more than 200 civil society and non-governmental organizations, and I'm told that it is the largest number of organizations in history to unite in an advocacy campaign and sign a letter to foreign governments that Ukraine should be granted candidate status in June," Kuleba emphasized.

The minister added that candidate status was the latest psychological barrier for EU skeptics. "I don't see any rational arguments from our skeptics," he said.

To date, Ukraine acquiring a candidate status for EU membership is supported by the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Albania, Montenegro, and northern Macedonia, France, Germany, Italy, Romania, Spain, Denmark.

Polish President Andrzej Duda has reportedly toured European capitals to persuade local politicians to support Ukraine.