(Reuters) – Ukraine has completed a questionnaire that will be a starting point for the European Union to decide on Kyiv’s membership, said Igor Zhovkva, deputy head of President Vladimir Zelensky’s cabinet.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen handed Zelensky a questionnaire during a visit to Kyiv on April 8th, promising a quicker start to Ukraine’s bid to join the EU after Russia’s invasion.
“Today I can say that the document was completed by the Ukrainian side,” Zhovkva told Ukrainian public television on Sunday night.
The European Commission will have to issue a recommendation on Ukraine’s compliance with the necessary membership criteria, he added.
“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 acquire EU candidate status in June during a planned European Council meeting.
The European Council is due to meet on 23-24 June, according to the Council’s timetable on its website.
“After that, we will have to start accession negotiations. And after we hold these negotiations, we can already talk about Ukraine’s full membership in the EU,” Zhovkva said.
(Report in Melbourne by Lydia Kelly; Editing by Stephen Coates)
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