Ukraine can become an official candidate for EU membership

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky formally handed a complete questionnaire on Monday to the EU envoy on the country’s entry into the bloc, and said he believed the move would lead to Ukraine receiving official candidate status in a few weeks.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen handed the questionnaire to Zelensky during a visit to Kyiv on April 8, promising a faster process for Ukraine’s nomination to join the European Union after Russia’s invasion of the country.

Pictures released by his government showed that Zelensky presented the completed document to the European Union’s envoy to Ukraine at a meeting.

“We firmly believe that this measure (granting candidate status) will take place in the coming weeks and will be positive for the history of our people given the price paid on the path to independence and democracy,” he added. The leader said during the meeting.

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Deputy Chief of Staff Zelensky said earlier on Monday that he expected Ukraine to be granted official EU candidate status in June at a scheduled meeting of the European Council, which includes leaders of the bloc’s member states.

He added that the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, would need to issue a recommendation on Ukraine’s compliance with the necessary membership criteria.

As a candidate country, Ukraine will begin negotiations on the harmonization of its laws with the legal framework of the European Union.