The Facts
- In an extraordinary session of the European Parliament on Mar. 1, lawmakers overwhelmingly backed a non-binding resolution urging EU member states to grant Ukraine 'candidate status' in its bid to join the bloc.
- MEPs backed the resolution – which condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine and called for further financial sanctions – by a margin of 637 to 13.
- It followed an impassioned plea from Ukrainian President Zelensky who joined the session by video-link and formally applied to join the EU a day earlier.
Sources Split
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The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Fast-tracking Ukraine's accession to the EU would send a crystal-clear message to Putin: Ukraine has firmly decided that it wants to be part of the European community, and his aspirations of re-building some Soviet-era structure have failed.
Establishment-critical narrative
While EU membership may seem like a good bargaining chip against Moscow, drawing Ukraine into the bloc draws the West to the precipice of an all-out global, and perhaps nuclear, conflict.
Cynical narrative
Irrespective of genuine European support for the Ukrainian plight, joining the EU bloc is an ardous process which requires meeting standards on everything from food to bank regulations to human rights. Just ask Turkey, who applied to join in 1999 and is yet to be accepted. The matter is further complicated by the conflict.
