In EU’s informal summit in France, on the night to Friday, March 11, member state leaders have supported Ukraine’s eurointegration, yet the process will not be fast, Al Jazeera reports.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government has submitted the country’s application for joining the EU and called for a fast-track procedure, while other countries in Europe have spent years to enter the bloc.
«Nobody entered the European Union overnight,» Croatia Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said, as talks among the 27 national leaders ended in the early hours on Friday.
European Council President Charles Michel said, in a show of sympathy and moral support: «Ukraine belongs to the European family.»
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«There is no fast-track process,» said Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, a prominent opponent of EU enlargement, while adding the bloc would continue deepening ties with Kyiv. «I want to focus on what can we do for Volodymyr Zelenskyy tonight, tomorrow, and EU accession of Ukraine is something for the long term – if at all,» he said.
However, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said this on Twitter: «A historic night at Versailles. After five hours of heated discussions EU leaders said yes to Ukrainian eurointegration. The process started. Now it is up to us and Ukrainians to accomplish it fast. Heroic Ukrainian nation deserves to know that they are welcome in EU.»
EU agrees to evaluate Ukraine as potential candidate state
