BERLIN

Germany sees Ukraine as a future EU member, and will do everything to support the recovery and the reconstruction efforts, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Monday.

Addressing a group of German and Ukrainian businessmen in Berlin, Scholz underlined that the EU member states will continue their political, economic and military support for Ukraine.

“Ukraine is part of the European family,” he stressed, and called on German companies to invest in Ukraine, to support recovery and the reconstruction efforts there.

“One who invests in Ukraine today, will be investing in a future EU member state, which will be part of our legal framework, our single market,” he said.

“When we are rebuilding Ukraine, we are doing this with the goal of EU membership in our mind,” Scholz added.

Many German companies have been hesitant to invest in Ukraine due to the ongoing war with Russia that began in February.

Ukraine was granted EU candidate status in June, setting in motion a membership process that could take years, or even decades.