Kyiv (dpa-AFX) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj firmly expects his country to have EU candidate status within the next few weeks. “I mean, this will not only be a decision for Ukraine, but for the entire European project,” said the head of state in his daily video message on Monday. That will also decide whether the EU has a future or not, Zelenskyj said.
The EU Commission wants to decide in June how to proceed with the ambitions of the country attacked by Russia. The federal government has not yet taken a position on this issue. However, Chancellor Olaf Scholz made it clear that there should be no shortcuts for Ukraine on the way to the EU. Ukraine sees their fight against Russia as sufficient qualification.
“On the 103rd day, Ukrainian Donbass is holding strong,” said 44-year-old Zelenskyy, referring to the situation in eastern Ukraine. In addition, everything is being done to ensure that the front in the Zaporizhia and Mykolaiv areas holds out. Heavy fighting continued around Sieverodonetsk, Lysychansk, Sloviansk, Bakhmut, Sviatohirsk, Avdiivka, Kurakhove in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions.
According to Zelenskyy, almost 18,000 Ukrainian soldiers have received awards since the start of the Russian attack. This is a response of the Ukrainian people to the Russian invasion. The United Nations has recorded more than 4,100 civilian deaths since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began at the end of February, but assumes the number of civilian casualties to be far higher./ast/DP/he