Poland believes Ukraine should join EU within "several years"

The politician announced this in Prague, speaking at Forum 2000.

According to Zbigniew Rau, Ukraine did everything to get the title of the country most devoted to European values, because it fights for them and pays the highest price for it.

"The question is, is the EU ready for this challenge? I mean the membership of the European Union. We made many mistakes during the accession process of the Western Balkan countries. It lasted too long, and they and we paid the price for this", the Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs said. 

"It is time to learn from this experience. A very transparent and dynamic accession process is necessary for Ukraine. If we can arrange it - and not in the next decades, but within a few years - this is the most important thing we can do for the future of Ukraine", he concluded.

"The time of passivity in Europe is over, and I consider this to be the slogan of our thinking and actions. This means that we must support all members of the transatlantic community and like-minded countries. We must support Ukraine as much as we can and as soon as possible", Rau emphasized.