European Union economy commissioner and former Italian premier Paolo Gentiloni on Friday hailed the European Commission's backing of candidate status for Ukraine, calling it "an historic step".
"Today we expressed our positive opinion on Ukraine's request to become an EU candidate country," Gentiloni tweeted.
"This is an historic step for Ukraine, which already belongs to the European family and which is fighting (Russia) to defend our shared values," the tweet underlined.
Friday's recommendation - the fastest-ever opinion on an EU candidacy - will now be discussed by leaders of the 27-country bloc at a summit next week in Brussels.
EU leaders are expected to approve Ukraine’s candidate status at a summit on June 23-24, though with tough conditions attached on democracy, rule of law, governance and anti-corruption standards.
The European Commission also proposed EU candidate status on Friday for Moldova, which shares a long border with Ukraine.
Launching accession talks requires unanimous approval from all member countries
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