Ukraine Should Receive Status Of Candidate For EU Membership Only With Moldova - Austrian Chancellor

Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer believes that Ukraine can receive the status of a candidate for EU membership only together with other applicants - in particular, Moldova.

He stated this on Friday during a visit to Estonia, European Pravda reports with reference to Krone.

According to Nehammer, this proposal arose from French President Emmanuel Macron. He added that discussions about candidate status should be conducted with "caution and honesty."

The Austrian Chancellor mentioned the example of Turkey, which almost 60 years ago decided to integrate into the EU and in 1999 on the second attempt received the status of a candidate for membership.

In turn, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas at a joint press conference with Nehammer noted that she supports granting Ukraine the status of a candidate for EU membership, but stressed that Kyiv should be ready to introduce complex reforms.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, the MEPs adopted a resolution recommending that the Council of the European Union grant Ukraine the status of a candidate for joining the EU.

Earlier, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba said that Ukraine needs exclusively the status of a candidate for membership in the European Union, but not other surrogate alternatives.