Ukraine's Foreign Minister explains NATO's caution over inviting Ukraine: "They are worried about speed"
The reason for the highly cautious wording in NATO's communiqué on Ukraine's membership prospects is the desire of major allies to reduce risks, the country’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.
Source: Kuleba in an interview with Ukrainian TV channel ICTV, as reported by European Pravda
Details: Upon Kuleba's mention of the fact that behind closed doors, partners are actually saying that "the issue is resolved, Ukraine will join NATO", to which he was asked why the wording of the summit communiqué was so indecisive.
Quote: "I think the reason is that our key partners, who really determined how far NATO could go in Vilnius, are afraid of the speed [of potential decisions being made]. I mean, they absolutely agree that Ukraine will 'arrive at its destination' and become a NATO member. But they are afraid that if you drive too fast, you can get into an accident. And they want to avoid that, to reach that point safely," explained Kuleba.
The presenter noted that the Alliance had the option of a "safety belt" by extending a political invitation to Ukraine, which does not imply any obligations.
Kuleba replied that this was the argument made by the Ukrainian side, and they had been trying to convince the allies for months.
Background: The Vilnius Summit decision contains quite positive wording regarding Ukraine. Among other things, the NATO summit agreed to waive the requirement for a Membership Action Plan on Ukraine's path to the Alliance. Meanwhile, the allies made it clear that they would invite Ukraine to join NATO "when the conditions are met".
The summit decision does not contain a list of conditions that Ukraine must fulfil. However, European Pravda reports that they will also include political ones, i.e., those related to reforms.
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