The European Commission will announce next week if it paves the way for Ukraine’s accession to the European Union The world

“Today’s talks will allow us to get our assessment by next weekend,” European Commission President Ursula van der Leyen told a news conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zhelensky.

• The European Union proposes to suspend all taxes on imports from Ukraine
• Ukrainian President Zhelensky appeals to EU members: ‘Prove that you are with us’

As a way of mitigating the geopolitical impact of the country that was invaded by Russia on February 24, the Ukrainian government is pushing for a firm “legal commitment” from the European Union to examine its candidacy.

There is an expectation that the green light for Ukraine’s candidacy will be available At the next summit of the meeting, on June 23 and 24.

Many senior officials and leaders of the 27th have warned that the recruitment process could take years or even decades, even if Ukraine gains candidate country status.

The former Soviet republic “has made progress in strengthening the rule of law, but reforms to combat corruption, for example, still need to be implemented,” said Van der Leyen.

Zhelensky responded that the fate of the EU was largely in danger in Ukraine.

“Russia wants to destroy European unity, it wants to divide Europe and weaken it. Russia is a target for the whole of Europe. Ukraine is the first step in this occupation,” he declared.

The arrival of Van der Leyen – second only to the beginning of the war – coincided with the intensification of fighting in the Donbass region (east), which had been partially controlled by pro-Russian separatists since 2014.

Destroy every city in Donbass

On Saturday Zelensky’s office cited night-time bombings by “occupiers” in the Kharkiv region, as well as in Lukansk and Donetsk, making Donbass.

An AFP photographer reported daytime artillery fighting around Severodonetsk.

Taking over this city would open the way from Moscow to another large city, Gramadorsk, which would be an important step in capturing the entire plain.

The “enemy” is trying to “intensify the concentration of his troops,” but Ukrainian forces are “successfully” resisting, in the Chevroletnetsk near Meteolkine, where “the invaders retreated” and “near Bopasna”, Ukrainian civil servants pointed out.

“Russia wants to destroy every city in Donbass without exaggerating,” Zelensky announced on Friday.

In Lysychansk, residents face a dilemma: stay, endure the bombings, or flee their homes.

Leonid Paseknik, a separatist leader from Lukansk, acknowledged that “Severodonetsk is not 100% liberated.” “Currently, we can not control the industrial zone,” he said during a visit to the Russian military hospital under construction in the area of ​​Poseknik AFP.

“But we will achieve our goal, we will liberate the industrial zone, Severodonetsk … and Lysychansk will be ours,” he added.

“Russia still has enough energy to wage a long war against our country,” said Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Agency.

The United States and the European Union have strongly supported the country under attack, supplying arms and supporting its economy, and imposing tough sanctions on Russia.

But Ukraine is pushing for a ban on long-range weapons and Russian fuel imports, which many European countries now rely on.

The effects of the conflict are affecting the world, especially the food market, due to the key role of Ukraine and Russia as wheat exporters.

Ukraine’s seafood outlets are practically blocked, preventing the export of millions of tons of wheat.

Prior to the Russian invasion, Ukraine was the world’s largest producer of sunflower oil and a major exporter of wheat, but now millions of tons of grain have been blocked.

In a video released at the Shangri-La Conversation in Singapore, Zhelensky warned that if Ukraine did not resume exports, many countries in Asia would “face a severe food crisis, including famine.” Africa.

The UN and many other countries are trying to open the sea route to allow exports.