There are conflicting expectations ahead of a forthcoming summit between EU leaders and the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky. Kyiv has made it clear that it wants to join the fast track for EU membership in two years – prime minister Denys Shmyhal said as much in an interview on January 30. But getting Brussels to commit to any definitive timeline – let alone 24 months – is highly unlikely.
Instead, the summit on February 3, which will follow a day of meetings between a high-level delegation of EU commissioners with senior Ukrainian government officials, is more likely to focus on the concrete, short-term deliverables that Ukraine will get out of its ever closer relationship with the EU.
After almost 12 months of brutal Russian aggression against Ukraine, there is no end in sight to the fighting and suffering of ordinary Ukrainians. Nor are there any signs of weakening western support that has provided a vital lifeline for the country – economically, politically and militarily.
