Ukraine seeks NATO invitation before Biden's departure - Ambassdor
Photo: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Joe Biden (president.gov.ua)
Ukraine’s Ambassador to NATO, Nataliia Galibarenko, stated that Ukraine wants to receive an invitation to join NATO before Joe Biden leaves the United States presidency. This could serve as a political signal, Reuters reports.
"Our idea is that giving Ukraine (an) invitation at this moment is a political signal... We sincerely believe that it can be part of the legacy of (the) current American administration," she said.
The agency noted that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has recently made it clear that he views a swift NATO invitation as part of the victory plan.
According to Ukrainian diplomat Galibarenko, an invitation to NATO would remove the "apple of discord" between Ukraine and Russia. Moscow has used the potential NATO membership of Ukraine to justify the war. Ukraine, in turn, has insisted that it needs to join the Alliance to protect itself from any future Russian aggression.
"If we will say that the invitation is there, for the Russian Federation, it would be like a final verdict – so that's it, so you cannot raise the stakes using this topic anymore," added the ambassador.
Ukraine's NATO membership
Recall that during the full-scale war, Ukraine has made progress on issues related to joining NATO and the European Union.
In the fall of 2022, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine was submitting an application for accelerated NATO membership. Ukraine awaited a clear timeline for joining the Alliance and called for a political decision on the invitation.
So far, such a decision has not been made. NATO has repeatedly stated that they keep the "doors open" for Ukraine. At the same time, allies hint that Ukraine will not be able to join the Alliance until the war is over.
Earlier, Zelenskyy noted that an invitation for Ukraine to join NATO is part of the victory plan.
