• At a session in Brussels, the EU is expected to accept Ukraine as a candidate for its membership.
• Ukraine submitted an application, and the procedure has since advanced at a record pace.
• At a rally on Monday night, more than 100,000 people demanded candidate status.

At a session in Brussels on Thursday, the European Commission is expected to accept Ukraine as a candidate for membership in the EU.

Days after the Russian invasion in February, Ukraine submitted an application, and the procedure has since advanced at a record pace.

According to its envoy to the EU, it would provide Ukrainians a psychological lift.

However, Vsevolod Chentsov acknowledged that “true integration” couldn’t begin until the conflict was done.

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The first official step toward EU membership is candidate status, and France stated last week that there was “complete accord” on Ukraine. However, joining can take a long time, and success is not guaranteed.

Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia are Western Balkan nations that have been candidate nations for years—in some cases, for more than a decade. Bosnia and Herzegovina submitted a candidacy application in 2016, but has yet to be accepted.

Edi Rama, the prime minister of Albania, said it was good that Ukraine was granted candidate status as he arrived for an EU summit with Western Balkan leaders, but Kyiv should not be deceived: “North Macedonia is a candidate [for] 17 years if I have not lost count, Albania eight, so welcome to Ukraine.”

Although it is not anticipated, several member states are lobbying for Bosnia to receive candidate status.

Ukraine’s representative told the BBC, “We do not support the idea of the wait,” claiming that Kyiv’s readiness might serve as a model for other nations.

“Every state has its own strategy and roadmap. And why should we wait if there is political will and backing from society and industry leaders to move forward with big and quick reform?”
While Georgia’s application is expected to be rejected, the European Commission has stated that the country may join the EU in “due time,” and Moldova’s application is also recommended for conditional acceptance. At a rally Monday night in the Georgian capital, more than 100,000 people demanded candidate status.

In exchange for prerequisites being met before accession talks can start, including as judicial and anti-corruption reforms, some EU member states have agreed to support Ukraine’s candidacy.

Even though the nation is at war and does not fully control its entire territory, Mr. Chentsov has asserted that some reforms may be implemented.

He asserts, “We are not starting from zero,” citing the progress made since the EU and Ukraine’s 2014 association agreement. But once the situation on the ground stabilised, it would be “natural” to implement more significant reforms, he continued.

Prior to receiving candidate status, some EU diplomats expressed worry that it may give Ukraine false hope.

The idea of membership, according to French President Emmanuel Macron, is decades away, and the Nato secretary general has cautioned that the struggle may continue years.

However, Mr. Chentsov asserted that nobody possessed a crystal ball and that there was a desire “to help Ukraine get there.”

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