All NATO members supports Ukraine’s accession, question is when it will happen – Stoltenberg
Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General of NATO, claims that all NATO members agree with the future accession of Ukraine, but when exactly this will happen is difficult to predict.
Source: Stoltenberg, in the interview with The Washington Post
Asked what the path to Ukraine's possible membership in NATO might be, the Secretary General indicated that "all NATO members agree that Ukraine will become a member of the Alliance."
"All members of the Alliance agree that Ukraine has the right to choose its own path, that this decision should be made not by Moscow, but by Kyiv. And… all allies agree that NATO's door remains open," Stoltenberg emphasised.
"The question is when, and I can't give you specific dates," he added.
The Secretary General reminded that the Alliance is helping Ukraine to move from Soviet-era equipment, doctrines, and standards to those of NATO doctrines, to make the Ukrainian Armed Forces operationally compatible with NATO forces, as well as to "assist in the further reform and modernization of their defence and security institutions."
"The urgent task now is to ensure the victory of Ukraine as a sovereign, independent state, because if Ukraine does not win, there will be nothing to discuss," Stoltenberg believes.
Background: In April, the Secretary General of NATO said that at the July summit in Vilnius, the member states of the Alliance are preparing to discuss the issue of Ukraine's membership and security guarantees for it, but the main issue remains: to ensure Ukraine's victory in the war.
The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dmytro Kuleba, noted that Ukraine will not be satisfied with any other decision of the NATO summit in Vilnius in July, except for real steps regarding its membership in the Alliance.
Read more: Ukraine's NATO Membership Needs no Action Plan, We Have to Leave 2008 Mistakes Behind.
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