The European Council has published the conclusions of the meeting regarding granting Ukraine the status of a candidate member of the European Union.
“The European Council recognizes the European perspective of Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Georgia. The future of these countries and their citizens lies in the European Union. The European Council has decided to grant the status of a candidate country to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova,” says the third section of the conclusions entitled “Application for membership of Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Georgia”.
The conclusions note that the European Commission is requested to report to the Council on “the fulfillment of the conditions specified in the Commission’s opinions on relevant applications for membership under its regular enlargement package”. “The Council will decide on further steps once all these conditions are fully met,” the document says.
With regard to Georgia, it is stated that the European Council is “ready to grant the status of a candidate country to Georgia after the priorities indicated in the Commission’s opinion on Georgia’s application for membership are resolved.”
“Each country’s progress towards the European Union will depend on its own merit in meeting the Copenhagen criteria, including the EU’s ability to admit new members,” the conclusions said.
