Pentagon Chief: No doubt Ukraine will join NATO after war
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (Getty Images)
Ukraine will undoubtedly join NATO as soon as its war with Russia comes to an end. But there is “still work to be done” in bringing Ukraine's equipment and training up to NATO standards, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told CNN.
"We heard just about every country in the room say as much,” Austin said after the NATO summit in the Lithuanian capital.
Austin noted that "there is still work to be done" in bringing Ukraine's equipment and training up to NATO standards
While “we are doing this work now as they fight this war, there is more that will need to be done to ensure that they have a full complement of capabilities,” he said.
NATO Summit
Despite expectations, Ukraine did not receive a direct invitation to NATO from its allies at the summit in Vilnius. As NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg explained, Ukraine will receive an invitation when "all allies agree and conditions are met." However, the declaration does not specify the required conditions.
Ahead of the NATO summit, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized the Alliance for its indecisiveness regarding Ukraine. He stated that it is "unprecedented and absurd" to have no specific timelines for both the invitation and Ukraine's membership.
However, Zelenskyy later announced that he understands that Ukraine cannot become a member of the Alliance as long as the war with Russia continues on its territory.
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, also does not see the possibility of Ukraine joining NATO until the war is over.
