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EU
leaders in Brussels are expected to sign off on last week's
recommendation by the European Commission, the EU executive.
After several days of internal EU discussions no opposition
among the 27 member states has surfaced, three diplomats told
Reuters.
"We are working towards the point where we tell (Russian
President Vladimir) Putin that Ukraine belongs to Europe, that
we will also defend the values that Ukraine defends,"
Luxembourg's foreign affairs minister Jean Asselborn told
reporters before a meeting with other EU ministers.
Moldova is also almost certain to be given candidate status, the
diplomats said, although Georgia must fulfil conditions, namely
that it overcome political deadlock in the country.
Despite some misgivings among northern EU countries that taking
in Ukraine, which suffers from endemic corruption, is
unrealistic, Denmark's foreign minister said he welcomed giving
it candidacy status.
"It's very good and it's something that Denmark whole-heartedly
supports; we want to help Ukraine to achieve its European
dream," Jeppe Kofod told reporters in Luxembourg.
While the candidacy will mark a strategic eastward shift by the
EU in the face of Russia's war in Ukraine, Kyiv would likely
take years to become a member of the bloc, if at all.
Ukraine already has a free trade pact with the EU but applied to
join days after Russia's invasion. Moscow says its "special
military operation" was partly necessitated by Western
encroachment into what it characterises as its rightful
geographical sphere of influence.
Putin has so far played down the issue of Ukraine's EU
membership.
(Reporting by Bart Meijer, Francesco Guarascio and Robin Emmott;
Editing by Alison Williams)
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