Zelensky on NATO membership: We are not waiting for an invitation from anyone; we are fighting for it.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that NATO membership would provide the best security guarantee for the country; however, Kyiv does not anticipate an invitation to join the alliance.

https://hromadske.ua/ru/mir/236498-zelenskiy-o-chlenstve-v-nato-my-ni-ot-kogo-ne-zhdem-priglasheniya-my-boremsya-za-eto2024-12-19 09:22:22

He made this statement at a briefing in Brussels following his meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on December 18, as reported by Hromadske's correspondent.

“We do not expect (an invitation to NATO — ed.), we are fighting for this right. Each such decision is a very complex part of our state's history. Therefore, we cannot expect anything from anyone; we can do our utmost to make it happen for us,” the head of state emphasized.

He also mentioned that Ukraine has guarantees of receiving new weapon packages, particularly from Italy, as well as continued financial support for Ukraine and sanctions against Russia; however, Zelensky continued, this is not enough.

“All of this is insufficient to guarantee that Putin will not come again. The best solution is a strong army, the largest in Europe. We have no right to limit the strength of our army. But strong guarantees come from the Alliance. A strong economy. While the war is ongoing, we have a significant budget deficit of 40-42 billion hryvnias,” the president stressed.

Ukraine and NATO

From July 11 to 12, 2023, the NATO summit took place in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, focusing on Ukraine and its relations with the North Atlantic Alliance.

At that time, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that NATO would invite Ukraine to join the Alliance “when the allies agree and the conditions are met.” He added that the process of obtaining membership for Ukraine “will transition from a two-step to a one-step pathway”.

This may mean that Ukraine will be invited to join NATO without a Membership Action Plan (MAP). Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky remarked that ahead of the summit in Vilnius, there were “signals” indicating that NATO is not ready to invite Ukraine to the Alliance. “Uncertainty is a weakness. And I will frankly discuss this at the summit,” the president assured.

A year later, at the summit in Washington, NATO member countries confirmed that Ukraine is on an “irreversible path” to membership in the Alliance. Furthermore, the allies acknowledged that the country is becoming increasingly operationally and politically integrated with the Alliance.

Before the summit, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed hope that Ukraine would become a member of the Alliance within the next 10 years. Meanwhile, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Julianne Smith stated that the Alliance does not plan to invite Ukraine to join this bloc in the near future.