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The latest developments in Russia’s war on Ukraine. All times EDT.

3:12 a.m.: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday his war-scarred country wants to join the European single market ahead of a decision on whether to grant Kyiv full EU membership, Agence France-Presse reported.

Zelenskyy was speaking at a press conference with EU president Ursula von der Leyen who came to Kyiv to work out a roadmap for Ukraine’s long-standing aspiration to join the union.

Ukraine applied for EU membership just five days after Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion. The EU formally accepted Ukraine’s candidacy to join the 27-nation bloc on June 23, in a strong signal of support.

Zelenskyy and von der Leyen spoke about Ukrainian energy facilities repeatedly hit by Russian forces and a European energy crisis as Moscow halts of disrupts vital supplies.

2:19 a.m.: Pope Francis said Thursday that it was morally legitimate for nations to supply weapons to Ukraine to help the country defend itself from Russian aggression.

Speaking to reporters, including Reuters, aboard a plane returning from a three-day trip to Kazakhstan, Francis also urged Kyiv to be open to eventual dialog, even though it may be difficult for the Ukrainian side.

The war in Ukraine, which Russia invaded on Feb. 24, provided the backdrop to the pope’s visit to Kazakhstan, where he attended a congress of religious leaders from around the world.

In a 45-minute airborne news conference, a reporter asked if it was morally right for countries to send weapons to Ukraine.

“This is a political decision, which it can be moral, morally acceptable, if it is done under conditions of morality,” Francis said.

He expounded on the Roman Catholic Church’s “Just War” principles, which allow for the proportional use of deadly weapons for self-defense against an aggressor nation.

1:17 a.m.: The European Union is prepared to extend a suspension of import duties on Ukrainian products, the bloc’s trade commissioner said Thursday, seeking to support the country’s hard-hit economy following Russia’s invasion.

“If the situation required it, we would be ready to extend” it, Valdis Dombrovskis told Agence France-Presse in an interview. The EU introduced the suspension of duties in May, to last for a year.

Dombrovskis, from Latvia, was speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of G-7 trade ministers at Neuhardenberg castle, in eastern Germany.

Ukraine’s Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, also present at the talks, had requested an extension of the measure, said the commissioner.

Germany, Europe’s top economy, had indicated it was ready to support an extension, he added.

12:02 a.m.:

Some information in this report came from Agence France-Presse.