As Kyiv claims political victory, Russia advances in east Ukraine

In the seventeenth week of Russia’s war on Ukraine, Kyiv is poised to become a candidate for the European Union, signalling another step away from Russia’s sphere of influence.

Earlier this week, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed into law the Istanbul Convention on preventing violence against women, as part of a broader diplomatic effort to secure unanimity for Ukraine’s candidacy before the EU summit, which takes place on Thursday and Friday.

“Every day we prove that we are already in the orbit of European values,” Zelenskyy said, as the European Commission described Ukraine as “well advanced in reaching the stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities”.

Key EU members Germany, France and Italy have already said they will back Ukraine’s candidacy.

“The [EU candidacy] status has chiefly a symbolic political character, which underlines that Ukraine belongs to Europe, it doesn’t belong to the Russian world as Russia wished … so it has political weight,” said Panayotis Ioakeimidis, professor of European policy at the University of Athens.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, citing security concerns over the encroachment of NATO on former Soviet territory, Ukraine has de-emphasised its NATO aspirations in favour of European ones.

It formally applied for EU membership four days into the invasion. Two weeks later, Zelenskyy told European leaders he did not believe NATO membership was a real prospect for Ukraine.

Source: Al-jazeera.