Moldova and Ukraine officially received the status of candidates for membership in the European Union on Thursday evening, after the end of the first day of the summit of heads of state and government of EU member states. This was the expected decision after the recommendation of the European Commission in the middle of the month, which was supported by the European Parliament during the week. The decision was described as historic.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that this is a "unique and historic moment in the relations between Ukraine and the EU", and that "the future of Ukraine is within the European Union".
Ukraine's aspirations to become part of the EU are not "from yesterday", but its European perspective became somewhat more realistic only after the Russian invasion in February. Since then, all enlargement policy procedures have been carried out at record speed.
However, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, was clear that the accession process will be based "on merit" and according to the rules that are overlooked by the enlargement policy. She explained that the negotiations will begin only when the necessary reforms are implemented, which includes the areas of the rule of law and the fight against corruption.
The same rules will apply to Moldova, a former Soviet state that has been seriously affected by the wave of refugees from Ukraine since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.
However, Georgia, which applied for candidate status in the same wave as Ukraine and Moldova, did not receive candidate status, because it "does not meet the requirements". Tens of thousands of Georgians who took to the streets of Tbilisi on Monday to support the country's path to the EU will have to be satisfied with Brussels' talk about the European perspective for some time.
That Ukraine and Moldova have no reason to celebrate their candidate status too much, the European Union showed them on the same day with the example of the countries of the Western Balkans. North Macedonia has been a candidate for membership for 17 years, and is still waiting for the opening of negotiations together with Albania.
The prime ministers of those two countries did not hide their disappointment and frustration with the fact that Bulgaria has been blocking them from progressing towards the EU for two years. In the part of the conclusions of the EU leaders, in which the Western Balkans are mentioned, for the umpteenth time, they call for the solution of the Macedonian-Bulgarian dispute, which would enable the opening of negotiations.
Bosnia and Herzegovina also left unsatisfied with the balance of the meeting with the EU, because Ukraine and Moldova received the status of candidates for membership before it. While for candidacy Bosnia will have to fulfill 14 points of the European Commission, divided into four areas (democracy and functioning of institutions, rule of law, fundamental rights and public administration reform), Ukraine and Moldova received that status without any previous conditions.
The Czech Republic, which takes over the presidency of the European Union on July 1st, will deal with Sarajevo's candidacy in the next six months.
Even Kosovo, which fulfilled the necessary conditions a long time ago, did not receive visa liberalization. At yesterday's meeting, President Vjosa Osmani emphasized this, who, addressing the EU leaders, said that she was the only one who needed a visa to attend the meeting.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić joined the justifiable dissatisfaction of the leaders in the region, although he is aware that official Belgrade is also to blame for the poor progress in the negotiations. And that: because of the weak performance in the fight against corruption and the rule of law, the decline of democracy and media freedom, as well as non-compliance with EU foreign policy.
Regardless, Interior Minister Aleksandar Vulin said in response to Ukraine's candidacy: "if the condition for Serbia to progress faster towards the Union would be to go to war with someone, then thank you, it's not worth it."
SP/ RFE/ BBC/ FoNet
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