Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukrainian forces prepared Friday to retreat from the strategic city of Severodonetsk after weeks of fierce fighting, a setback that could pave the way for Russia to seize a larger swath of eastern Ukraine. The announcement came shortly after the European Union granted Ukraine candidate status in a show of support for the former Soviet republic, though there is still a long path ahead to membership. Moscow dismissed the EU decision as a move to “contain Russia” geopolitically. Russia has focused its offensive on the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine after being repelled f…