Ukraine as well as Moldova, Georgia and Western Balkan countries are members of the European family, said Prime Minister of Portugal António Costa in Berlin.

According to Costa, all candidate countries require putting efforts to reform their institutions. He said the expansion process had to be dealt seriously. The EU also had to reform its institutions.

“Let me be clear, with the current rules, we cannot take new members aboard. But if we want to be serious and reach the result, we need strong European grounds to receive these new members where they are expected,” he said.

The Party of European Socialists (PES) congress on Friday adopted a resolution, supporting “the granting of candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova and the readiness to grant it to Georgia.”

“Their future lies inside the European Union, and we want that to happen as soon as possible, once they have met all the accession criteria, including those on the rule of law and democracy,” reads the document.

The Georgian delegation, led by the ruling Georgian Dream party Chair, Irakli Kobakhidze, is participating in the PES congress in Berlin, Germany.