Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky understands that a single country cannot “drag” NATO into a war. “We will not become a member of NATO while this war lasts.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged on Friday that Ukraine’s accession to NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), which Kiev insistently calls for, will be “impossible” before the end of the ongoing war with Russia.
“Joining NATO is the best guarantee of security for Ukraine (…) but we understand that we cannot drag a single NATO country into a war”Zelensky stated at a joint press conference with Estonian President Alar Karis.
“So we understand that we will not be members of NATO while this war lastsnot because we don’t want to, but because it’s impossible,” he said.
It was a rare admission by the Ukrainian president, who has ramped up pressure since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24 last year for his country to join NATO and the European Union (EU) as soon as possible. .
Also on Thursday, Zelensky urged European leaders meeting at a summit in Moldova to further increase their support for Ukraine and remove “doubts” about Kiev’s membership in the Western military defense organization.
In principle favorable to Ukraine’s integration, NATO, on the other hand, has been very vague about the timing of that accession, fearing an escalation of tensions with Moscow.
The Secretary General of the Atlantic Alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, argued in April that the priority for Ukraine should be to win the war. The issue of Ukraine’s membership has yet to be discussed at the organization’s July summit in Lithuania. Western countries are already providing Kiev with military and financial aid of several tens of billions of euros, essential for Ukraine’s war effort.
Source: Observadora
