Zelenskyy convened special council on NATO: What was discussed
Archive photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy today, April 1, held a special meeting regarding cooperation with NATO, according to his statement on Facebook.
"Today, I held a special meeting regarding our work with the Alliance concerning compatibility and prospects for this year," the statement reads.
According to him, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, and the international team of the ministry were present at the meeting. According to him, this year poses several fundamental questions for relations between Ukraine and NATO.
"Specifically, this concerns the summit in Washington and many other aspects of cooperation. Only with Ukraine in the Alliance can we count on real security in Europe," added the President.
Ukraine and NATO
On September 30, 2022, Ukraine applied for NATO membership under an accelerated process. Kyiv expected to receive an invitation to join NATO at the summer summit in Vilnius, but this did not happen.
Until now, there have been quite contradictory statements regarding the timeline for Ukraine's NATO membership. For example, NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană recently stated that Ukraine will become part of the North Atlantic Alliance, but it is still unclear when exactly. Previously, Stoltenberg mentioned that Ukraine would not be able to join NATO until the end of the war.
It is worth noting that foreign ministers of NATO countries provided Ukraine with recommendations for initial reforms for NATO membership at a meeting in Brussels on November 29, 2023.
