Published: Less than 20 min ago
The European Union should speed up Ukraine’s accession process to the union as a reward for the country’s contribution to European security, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Wednesday, Politico reports.
Meloni describes Ukraine as “an outpost for security on the European continent” in the fight against Russia’s invasion.
– The smartest way to thank Ukrainians for what they do is to speed up the opportunity for them to become part of the European institutions, Meloni said in connection with a bilateral meeting in Rome with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.
Ukraine was granted formal candidate status last June, four months after the Russian invasion. The process of becoming a member of the Union usually takes several years, with EU-related reforms that must be implemented to meet the accession criteria.