Current impossibility of Ukraine's NATO accession explained by Latvia's Foreign Minister
Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, Krisjanis Karinš (facebook.com/karinskrisjanis)
The main condition for Ukraine's accession to NATO is the end of the war with Russia. However, in addition to this, our country must complete all the necessary reforms for membership in the Alliance, Latvian Foreign Minister Krisjanis Karinš said in a blitz interview with RBC-Ukraine.
He reminded that in the summer at the summit in Vilnius, it was decided that Ukraine would be a member of NATO when the conditions allowed.
"The conditions are the war, but what we need to do, moving towards Washington (the next NATO summit in Washington, - ed.), in July, in about six months, is to work and coordinate a roadmap or steps that NATO will take to help Ukraine be ready to join," Karinš notes.
The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia emphasizes that "it is one thing to say that someone will be in NATO and quite another to be ready for it."
"So, there are issues of operational compatibility, military procedures, and legislative matters. My country, like every NATO member, had to adopt all their systems, especially concerning military compatibility. And we have to help Ukraine take all these steps so that when the time comes, Ukraine is also ready," the Latvian minister adds.
Ukraine's accession to NATO
On September 30, 2022, it became known that Ukraine was submitting an application to join NATO under an accelerated procedure. Ukraine expected to receive an invitation to join NATO during the summer summit in Vilnius, but this did not happen.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg emphasizes that Ukraine will not be able to join the Alliance until active hostilities end.
Yesterday, a meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council at the level of heads of foreign affairs took place in Brussels. At the meeting, the ministers of foreign affairs of the NATO countries provided Ukraine with recommendations on primary reforms for joining the Alliance.
