EU Commission President: "Decision on Granting Ukraine EU Candidate Status by Next Week"

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission [Photo by AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Union (EU) Commission, announced that she will decide by next week whether to recommend granting Ukraine candidate status for EU membership.

According to the British daily The Guardian on the 12th, von der Leyen made a surprise visit to Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, on the 11th (local time) and discussed EU membership issues with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

At a joint press conference with President Zelensky, von der Leyen said, "As a result of today's discussions, we expect to complete the assessment of Ukraine's EU membership application by next week." She added, "The Ukrainian government has done a lot (for EU membership)" and "We want to support Ukraine's journey towards the EU."

The European Commission, the EU's executive body, is reportedly scheduled to finalize its opinion on granting Ukraine candidate status for EU membership on the 17th and recommend it to member states. If the Commission presents a positive opinion and all 27 member states unanimously approve it at the EU summit on the 23rd-24th, Ukraine will be granted candidate status for EU membership.

President Zelensky has repeatedly appealed to the EU for Ukraine's membership, citing the country's geopolitical vulnerability.

However, while expressing support for Ukraine, von der Leyen stated, "There are still reform tasks such as eradicating corruption that need to be addressed for Ukraine to be granted candidate status." AFP reported that von der Leyen made no promises to President Zelensky during the visit.