Similar to the arms deliveries, the Union is also aiming for a vote in the Bundestag in the dispute over Ukraine's EU accession. While Chancellor Scholz expresses hesitation, the CDU and CSU point to a strategic interest in getting Moldova and Georgia on board alongside Kyiv.
The CDU/CSU is pushing for Ukraine, but also Georgia and Moldova, to be granted EU candidate status. According to a report by "Welt", the Union faction is preparing a Bundestag motion to ask the federal government to support this. The three countries' desire for EU membership is likely to be discussed at the EU summit on June 23.
"In view of the current geopolitical shifts and the Russian war of aggression, Ukraine, but also the Republic of Moldova and Georgia, are striving towards the EU with even greater determination and urgency. It is in our strategic interest to do our utmost to support these states on their way to membership According to "Welt", it says in the draft for the CDU/CSU application. The text should be decided by the parliamentary group on June 21 and then introduced in the Bundestag.
"If a European connection fails, then an entire region threatens to fall under the Russian or Chinese sphere of influence," the newspaper warns the CDU and CSU in the text. "This would have a significant negative impact on security policy stability across Europe." The federal government is therefore also called upon to support Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova "in the form of associated membership in joint programs" before they gain full EU membership. The three countries each submitted an application for EU membership on March 3, shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz has so far been reluctant to comment on this. The SPD politician made it clear that there should be no shortcuts for Ukraine on the way to the EU. Moldovan President Maia Sandu will meet with Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin on Friday.
Ukraine, on the other hand, sees their fight against Russia as sufficient qualification. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said earlier this week that he was counting on his country becoming an EU candidate 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 make a decision on this in June. The Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, Ruslan Stefantschuk, described a possible EU accession candidate status for his country as an incentive for further reforms. On Wednesday in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, the 46-year-old campaigned for Ukraine to be granted the prospect of EU membership and not to take away the hopes of Ukrainians. According to the parliamentary translation, Stefantschuk said he could assure MPs that this message would be an incentive for his country to push ahead with further reforms quickly. It is important that Ukraine get this stimulus from the EU summit on June 23-24.
