(Bloomberg) -- The European Union plans to put forward a negotiating framework for Ukraine’s accession talks as soon as next week as the war-torn country seeks to speed up its integration into the bloc, Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis said.

The EU’s executive arm will recommend that member states proceed with adopting the framework once Ukraine fulfills outstanding conditions, Dombrovskis said in a news conference Friday with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal in Kyiv. “There’s already very good progress, so that should not create any substantial delays.”

The negotiating framework establishes guidelines and principles for accession negotiations and the European Council will present it at the start of the talks. The European Commission has also started a comprehensive analysis of how Ukraine’s law conform to the bloc’s. 

EU leaders agreed to open membership talks with Ukraine in December. Ukraine was asked to meet several additional conditions related to its membership bid before the more formal negotiating framework can be launched. 

More progress on the path toward joining the bloc would help boost morale in Kyiv. In the third year of the invasion, Ukraine’s troops are struggling to overcome a shortage of ammunition and personnel, as well as a stalled $61 billion aid package from the US.

The EU set several milestones for Kyiv to reach in areas including judicial reforms, lobbying and minority rights. The Ukrainian parliament adopted some of the required laws, though there are still some outstanding issues to iron out.

Read more: What Ukraine’s EU Candidacy Means, and What’s Ahead: QuickTake

Even with a green light from EU member states, the negotiations will take years, as the path to membership is lengthy and complicated. Croatia was the last country to join the bloc and its application lasted 10 years before it was formally accepted in 2013.

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