The European Commission has recommended that Ukraine and the European Union (EU) should begin formal talks about the former Soviet state joining the European bloc.
This comes five months after the country was officially awarded EU candidate status.
The European Commission said that talks should begin with Moldova and that Georgia should become a candidate, if certain reforms were implemented.
Moldova and Ukraine became candidates in June, both having applied for membership shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The awarding of candidate status to the two countries does not mean that EU membership will happen soon. Both countries will have to implement a number of reforms before being awarded membership.
Becoming a member of the EU can take many years and being a candidate is no guarantee. For example, Turkey and the EU began negotiations about Turkey joining the body in 2005, after first having applied in 1987. Negotiations are currently frozen.