The executive arm of the European Union recommended on Friday that Ukraine apply for membership, the first step in a process that could take decades.
The approval will be discussed by bloc leaders next week in Brussels.
“Ukraine has clearly demonstrated its aspiration and determination to live up to European values and standards”, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said about Twitter. “We want them to live the European dream with us”.
The invasion of Russia in February has increased pressure to accelerate Ukraine’s candidate status. But membership talks require unanimous approval from all 27 member counties, and some disagree on how quickly the process of accepting new members should proceed.
The announcement comes as Russia continues its attacks on cities in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, leaving desperate residents wondering what the next few years will hold for them.
Latest developments:
►Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on Friday at the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg after the Kremlin said “massive cyber attacks” delayed his appearance, according to the Washington Post and CNN.
► Ukraine will not host the Eurovision Song Contest in 2023, organizers announced on Friday. In May, the Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra won the competition with “Stefania” and the right to host next year’s event.
►The UK said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was in Ukraine on Friday for a surprise visit, his second trip since the Russian invasion began.
►Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday criticized the United States for its “reckless and insane” sanctions against the Kremlin, arguing that its economy will outweigh the financial consequences of its war in Ukraine.
The families of 2 Americans who disappeared in Ukraine speak
Families of two men from Alabama – who went missing near Kharkiv in a battle last week and was feared to have been captured – told USA TODAY they are hoping the men could be released.
Joy Black’s fiancée Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh, a 27-year-old former marine, drew up a will, said goodbye, and left Hartselle, Alabama, in April to help the Ukrainians repel Russian forces.
That same month, not far in Tuscaloosa, former army sergeant Alexander Drueke, a 39-year Iraq war veteran, deliberated for a month before deciding to pack his bags for Ukraine.
On Friday, Russian state television showed the video of the two men, confirming that they had been taken prisoner and raising fears over their fate. They are believed to be the first Americans captured by Russian forces since the war began on February 24.
Earlier, Drueke’s aunt Dianna Shaw, 55, had urged the government to help bring them home. If they are in custody, “We appeal for the humane treatment of Alex and Andy in the meantime,” Shaw said in a text message to USA TODAY on Friday. “Coach Nick Saban always tells us Bama fans to ‘trust the process’ and that’s exactly what we’re doing.”
Meanwhile, the State Department said it was aware of reports that a third American had disappeared in Ukraine, which the Washington Post and CNN identified as Grady Kurpasi, another Navy veteran.
On Friday, President Joe Biden said he was briefed. “We don’t know where they are, but I want to reiterate: Americans shouldn’t go to Ukraine now. Tell it again: Americans shouldn’t go to Ukraine,” he told reporters. Read more here.
– Chris Kenning, USA TODAY
Biden: There is a “price to pay” for helping Ukraine, but it was important
In a rare interview with a newspaper, President Biden told The Associated Press Thursday that “there would be a price to pay” for helping Ukraine, but not taking action would be worse.
“You would see chaos in Europe,” Biden said. “The Russians could have continued in other countries and China and North Korea could have been encouraged to make their own moves.”
Asked about the political risk he now faces due to rising gas prices and whether Americans have an everyday idea of the national security stakes he described, Biden said most families are just looking to understand how to put food on the table. But as president, he must be willing to make tough decisions despite any political consequences, he said.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently acknowledged that the American Rescue Plan’s $ 1.9 trillion child tax credit increase has increased demand and may have caused a “marginal” rise in grocery prices. food. Biden rejected this possibility.
“It could be debated whether it had a marginal and minor impact on inflation. I don’t think he did. And most economists don’t think that’s the case, “she said.” But the idea that it caused the inflation is bizarre. “ Read more here.
– Maureen Groppe, USA TODAY
Russian-owned superyacht seized by the United States arrives in Hawaii
A Russian-owned superyacht hijacked by the United States arrived in the port of Honolulu on Thursday flying the American flag after the United States won a legal battle in Fiji last week to take the $ 325 million ship.
The FBI has linked the Amadea to the Russian oligarch Suleiman Kerimov. The United States said Kerimov secretly bought the Cayman Islands-flagged vessel last year through various shell companies.
MOREOVER:How the hijacking of Russian superyachts helps the feds punish Putin and his oligarchs
The ship became a target of Task Force KleptoCapture, launched in March to seize assets of Russian oligarchs to pressure Russia to end the war in Ukraine. The 348-foot-long ship, about a football field long, features a live lobster tank, hand-painted piano, swimming pool, and large helipad.
Attorney Feizal Haniff, who represented Millemarin Investments, the owner on the card, said the owner was another wealthy Russian who, unlike Kerimov, is not subject to sanctions.
The United States will send a $ 1 billion package to Ukraine
The United States announced that it would send a $ 1 billion military assistance package to Ukraine earlier this week, the largest aid allocation provided by the United States since the invasion.
Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Anna Malyar said this week that Ukraine received only 10% of the military assistance required by Western countries.
Meanwhile, France, Germany, Slovakia, Canada and Poland have also pledged to send more military aid to Ukraine this week.
Russian spy attempted to enter international court investigating war crimes as an intern, Dutch say
A Russian military spy presented himself as a Brazilian citizen in an attempt to obtain an internship at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, which is investigating war crimes allegations in Ukraine, the Dutch intelligence service said Thursday.
The General Intelligence and Security Service called Russian intelligence officer Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov and said he used an elaborate identity to try to infiltrate the court in April. He published a letter accompanying Cherkasov’s internship application. Writing under the pseudonym Viktor Muller Ferreira, he wrote a complex cover story about growing up in poverty in Brazil and how his family members suffered from heart problems.
Cherkasov was detained at a Dutch airport and deported to Brazil, where he could face legal proceedings.
“Had the intelligence officer been able to gain access as an intern at the ICC, he would have been able to gather information there and seek (or recruit) sources and organize access to the ICC’s digital systems.” General The intelligence and security service said in a statement.
This would have made a “significant contribution” to the intelligence that Russia is seeking. The spy may also have been able to influence the criminal proceedings, the service said.
There has been no immediate reaction from Moscow, although the infiltration attempt may indicate how seriously Russian President Vladimir Putin is taking Russian war crimes allegations in Ukraine seriously. The Kremlin has consistently denied the allegation, saying the West was preparing a disinformation campaign against Russia.
– Kim Hjelmgaard
Contribution: Associated Press
