By Talha Ozturk
BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - The European Union needs a plan for strategic action on enlargement and the integration of Ukraine and Moldova, Germany’s foreign minister said on Friday.
“We must finally take the next steps in the Western Balkans, otherwise, Russia will take them. But it will not be enough to put more chairs in the circle in Brussels. It’s time to continue building the EU, including moving away from unanimity in foreign policy,” Annalena Baerbock said on social media.
She termed Russia’s war on Ukraine “a historic turning point for our continent,” emphasizing that decisions taken now “will shape the conditions in Europe for a long time – even if the accession process remains long and tedious.”
“The same goes for our friends in Moldova,” she said.
Emphasizing that Ukraine “defends the values of Europe,” Baerbock warned that the EU should “not slam the door in her face.”
“But the candidate status is about more: the question of whether we are able to act strategically at a historic moment, instead of according to a formula,” she added.
Earlier on Friday, the European Commission recommended candidate status for Ukraine and Moldova.
Just four days after the Ukraine war began on Feb. 24, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy formally approved Kyiv’s request to join the EU.
Georgia and Moldova soon followed suit and submitted their EU membership applications on March 3.