NGO Promote Ukraine, together with the Institute of Innovative Governance and Avenir de lEurope organize a symbolic EU-Ukraine human chain in support of Ukraine's EU Candidacy on June 12, 2022 in Brussels, Belgium. (Thierry Monasse/Getty Images) European Union leaders on Thursday are set to make Ukraine a candidate for joining the 27-nation bloc, a first step in a long and unpredictable journey toward full membership that could take many years to navigate.Making Ukraine a contender now seems to be a done deal after national leaders were initially divided on how quickly to embrace the war-torn country's request to become an EU member, which the Ukrainian government submitted only a few days after Russia invaded its neighbor on Feb.
24.According to several diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity before a leaders' summit in Brussels, Ukraine will receive the unanimous approval required for candidate status and the launch of eligibility negotiations.RELATED: Journalist, soldier killed in Ukraine were 'coldly executed,' press group says"This is a decisive moment for the European Union," European Council President Charles Michel, the EU summit chair, said, describing the question of Ukraine's candidacy "a geopolitical choice that we will make today."Members of the European Parliament endorsed Ukraine's bid hours before the summit started, voting to pass a resolution that calls EU heads of state and government to "move without delay" and "live up to their historical responsibility."The EU's 27 nations have been united in backing Ukraine’s resistance to Russia’s invasion, adopting unprecedented economic sanctions against Moscow.