(Reuters) – Ihor Zhovkva, deputy head of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office, said Ukraine has completed a questionnaire that will serve as a starting point for the European Union to decide on Kyiv’s membership.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen handed the questionnaire to Zelensky during her visit to Kyiv on April 8, pledging a faster start to Ukraine’s bid to join the European Union after Russia’s invasion of the country.
“Today I can say that the document has been completed by the Ukrainian side,” Zhovkva told Ukrainian public radio station Sunday evening.
He added that the European Commission would need to issue a recommendation on Ukraine’s compliance with the necessary membership criteria.
“We expect the recommendation … to be positive, and then the ball will be on the side of the EU member states.”
Zhovkva added that Ukraine expects to obtain the status of a candidate country to join the European Union in June during a scheduled meeting of the European Council meeting.
The European Council meets from 23 to 24 June, according to the Council’s schedule on its website.
“Next, we will need to start accession talks. Once we have those talks, we can already talk about Ukraine’s full membership in the EU,” Zhovkva said.
(Reporting in Melbourne by Lydia Kelly; Editing by Stephen Coates)
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