Austrian Chancellor: "Ukraine's immediate full accession to EU is unrealistic"

"In my opinion, it is unrealistic for Ukraine to become a full member of the European Union (EU) immediately," Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said in an interview with Kronen Zeitung, Report informs.

The Austrian Chancellor stressed the need to create a "European Preparatory Space" (Europäischen Vorbereitungsraum). He said staying in this space would allow Ukraine and Moldova to get closer to EU standards.

According to the Chancellor, this should be an intermediate step between cooperation and full membership in the EU.

"We are united by one goal; we all want a strong, independent and economically prosperous Ukraine. Ukraine is currently struggling to survive politically and territorially. All our efforts are primarily aimed at stopping Russia's aggressive war. At this stage, rapid full membership in the European Union may not be a topical issue anyway," Nehammer said.

According to him, it is necessary to eliminate the emotions from the current debate and apply the same standards to the EU, which apply to other membership candidates from the Western Balkans.