The inclusion process of Ukraine to the European Union “is based on qualifications and should be beneficial for both the candidate country and the EU,” the Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, at a press conference she and other leaders held from Kyiv, where they were attending a summit marking three years since Russia invaded the country.

Asked about Ukraine’s EU membership, von der Leyen explained that she was reluctant to give a specific date for when it could be implemented, as this could mean that other candidate countries would also ask for such a date, the BBC reported.

He added that Ukraine was doing well and could be “admitted earlier than 2030” if the country continued “at this speed and this quality”.

Ursula von der Leyen, responding to a question about lifting sanctions against Russia if a peace deal is reached, said they (sanctions) would not be ended unless Moscow showed a willingness to create a lasting peace in Ukraine.

Zelensky: We hope the war will end this year, NATO membership will help us

For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the war with Russia has caused thousands of deaths. “That is why we will never forget it,” he added.

Responding to a question about what he thinks about the war, which has been going on for three years, the Ukrainian president replied as follows: “We hope we can end the war this year,” he replies, adding that it has been “very difficult” for the entire nation.

Zelensky added that in the short term, Ukraine needs security guarantees to prevent Russia from returning in the coming years. “Joining the EU and NATO soon will help us a lot,” he said.

It should be noted at this point that Volodymyr Zelensky, in another diplomatic move, recently said he would resign as president in Ukraine if Kyiv became a member of NATO, a proposal Moscow has however rejected as part of any peace deal.

Regarding U.S.-Ukraine relations, which appear strained, Zelensky avoided answering a reporter’s question about the president, Donald Trump.

“I hope the United States will continue to support (Ukraine), as all partners do,” he said. “We must also not lose this unity between Europe and the United States,” Zelensky added.

It is stressed that relations between the two countries were particularly sharpened after the United States proposed a “rapid end” to the war in Ukraine without reference to respect for Ukraine’s territorial integrity at the UN General Assembly.

As CNN reported last week, Washington urged U.N. members to support its resolution on the war in Ukraine despite criticism of its controversial wording, diplomatic sources said.

The resolution is a cause for further tension in relations between the two countries, in that it omits references to Ukrainian territory occupied by Russia and instead focuses on urging a swift end to the conflict, without considering Kyiv’s territorial integrity.

In addition, last week, Trump called the Ukrainian president a “dictator” and said he has done a “terrible job” leading Ukraine.

This was preceded by Zelensky’s statement that Trump “lives in a disinformation space” ruled by Moscow.