The Foreign Ministry reacted to the outrageous statement of the French minister/collage 24 channel
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry reacted to the statement of French Minister of European Affairs Clement Bonnet, who believes that Ukraine's accession to the EU will take 20 years. Kyiv urged to grant Ukraine the status of an EU candidate country.
Candidacy will be an important signal for Ukrainians, – Foreign Ministry
Representative of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Oleg Nikolenko said that Russia's military aggression against Ukraine testified to the need to rethink the future of Europe, Channel 24 reports.
The approaches that have guided European politicians so far have not been able to secure the European continent from new aggression, he said.
Nikolenko stressed that alternatives to Ukraine's membership in the EU will not make the European community stronger.
“Talking about alternatives that can replace the full integration of Ukraine into the EU is a change in form, but not in content. This path will not make the European community stronger and more prosperous,” the Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
He said that is why Kyiv insists on granting Ukraine the status of a candidate member of the EU in June.
Today Ukraine is the only place in Europe where people defend European values at the cost of their own lives. The candidacy will be an important signal to Ukrainians that Europe appreciates and respects their efforts,” Nikolenko said.
He added that granting the status of an EU candidate does not mean immediate membership. “This is a process that needs to be passed. And we are confident that we will go through this path faster if France and other influential European countries demonstrate leadership,” the representative of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry concluded.
Scandalous statement of the French minister: what is known
- French Minister of European Affairs Clement Bon was skeptical about Ukraine's chances to join the European Union. In particular, he said that this is unlikely to happen in 6 years. According to him, the process will take 15-20 years.
- At the same time, Clement Bon continued the rhetoric of French President Emmanuel Macron and stated that a political project should be created for Ukraine.
- As you know, Macron is promoting the idea of creating a “European political community”, which should be an addition to the EU. Subsequently, the French President clarified that his initiative was not an alternative to EU membership, but an addition.
- According to Macron, countries seeking to join the EU should unite within the framework of the project.
< h3> Ukraine may get the status of a candidate for EU membership
On February 28, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed an application to join the European Union. Kyiv's application was accepted by the European Parliament almost immediately.
After that, the European future of Ukraine was supported at the EU summit and called on the European Commission to prepare an opinion on the readiness of our state to obtain the status of a candidate for membership in the European Union.
Ukraine has already submitted European Commission questionnaire, which is required to obtain the status of a candidate.
In June, the EU summit will be held, at which Ukraine's application for EU membership will be discussed. If Ukraine receives this status, it will start the negotiation process for joining the European Union.
