>

Yes but that's simply to say they're a candidate. They can be a candidate and the EU will regularly be checking in to see that they're making the required reforms for actually becoming a member. If they don't make the reforms, they don't join. If they take decades to reform, then it'll be decades before they join.
Ukraine will be in the same boat.
Damn that sure is a lot of corruption. >

Much remained unchanged since USSR days.
Oligarchs owned everything, controlled everything, etc.
With the ru backers no longer in positions of power, reform is finally possible.
Also, a requirement for EU membership, hence many laws now passed to that end. >

The EU requirement is the big thing. If they didn’t make moves to embrace western democracy and remove political corruption they would not be joining the bloc after the war.
Possibly join NATO maybe, but not the EU. >

The EU just granted Bosnia a place even though they are near the bottom of the corruption index