Moscow will pay close attention to developments regarding the possible granting of Ukraine’s candidate status for accession to the European Union. This was stated to journalists by the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov, world agencies report.
“This, of course, requires our increased attention, because we all know about the intensification of discussions in Europe on strengthening the European Union’s defense component – the military, its defense component for security,” the Kremlin spokesman said. He noted that “various transformations are taking place” in the European Union that require attention.
On June 17, the European Commission must formulate a recommendation for granting Kyiv the status of a candidate for EU membership, which the heads of state and government of the communities will consider on June 23-24. The European Commission’s (EC) recommendation to the EU Council to start negotiations is the first step towards the country’s accession to the EU.
The state must then agree with the European negotiators on the list of necessary conditions. The negotiation process may take several years. In the context of the conflict in Ukraine, the EC has come up with an initiative to give Kyiv candidate status in an accelerated manner. Immediately afterwards, Moldova and Georgia requested a similar procedure.
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