Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger urged Olaf Scholz during a visit to Berlin to support Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova as EU membership candidates, Politico reports.

“We have to realize that the enlargement is a must. The world needs Europe to be strong. And the countries are waiting,” said Heger before meeting with Scholz.

According to Politico, Heger said in the interview that accepting Ukraine or others as official EU membership candidates would just be the first step and that any further progress toward their actual inclusion in the bloc must be “merit-based.”

“We will not do any shortcuts, we will not lower the criteria," he added.