White House on Ukraine's NATO invitation: We must focus on Kyiv's victory in war
John Kirby, White House representative (photo: Getty Images)
For the administration of US President Joe Biden, inviting Ukraine to join NATO is not a priority. Washington wants to be sure that Ukraine will win the war with Russia and wants to help it do so, says John Kirby, Strategic Communications Coordinator for the US National Security Council.
"We were very clear. President Biden has made it clear that NATO membership is in Ukraine's future. There is no doubt about that. We will work with Ukraine on its path, but the first priority is to have confidence that Ukraine can win this war.", Kirby said in an interview.
According to him, this is why the Biden administration wants to increase aid to Ukraine and make sure that Ukraine has everything it needs on the battlefield. Kirby added that Washington and Kyiv are working on long-term bilateral security agreements to improve Ukraine's defense industrial base and make sure that Ukraine gets the weapons it needs even when the war is over.
"Because no matter how it happens, Ukraine will still have a long border with Russia with the latter's potential for aggression. Kyiv must be sure that it will protect itself and its citizens", he explained.
Also, as the White House representative noted, the United States is working with Ukraine to implement reforms, "which every NATO candidate needs".
"I cannot say more today. We must focus on helping Ukraine win on the battlefield.", he summarized.
US assistance to Ukraine
Earlier, the media reported that the Biden administration wants to spend all the funds remaining in the funding package to help Ukraine by the end of the year. This information was confirmed by Kirby. According to him, the White House will “spend every dollar it has” to support Ukraine.
The White House did not rule out that a new military aid package for Ukraine could be announced at the Ramstein meeting. It is expected in November.
Ukraine wants NATO invitation
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly called on the allies to extend an invitation to NATO to Kyiv. The Ukrainian side promoted this issue at the NATO summits in 2023 and 2024 but to no avail.
This fall, Kyiv presented its partners with a so-called victory plan, which contains steps that the allies should take to give Ukraine the strength to end the war. The first point of this plan is an invitation to join NATO.
