Stoltenberg: Ukraine will one day have its place in the alliance

2023-04-20 20:15:30, Kosova & Bota CNA

The Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, declared on Thursday from Kiev that Ukraine deserves to join NATO and promised continuous support for this country.

" Ukraine's proper place is in the Euro-Atlantic family... Ukraine's proper place is in NATO ," said Mr. Stoltenberg during a joint press conference in Kiev with Ukrainian President Zelenskiy.

This is the first visit to Ukraine by the Secretary General of NATO since the beginning of Russia's attack more than a year ago. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Thursday that the time has come for NATO to make the political decision to invite Ukraine to join the alliance, and that Kiev would like to know when membership might happen.

The Ukrainian leader said during a joint press conference during the NATO Secretary General's visit to Kiev that the upcoming meeting of the alliance in Vilnius could turn into a historic meeting, if Ukraine is invited.

" There is no objective obstacle to invite Ukraine to the alliance, and now that the majority of the population of NATO countries and the majority of Ukrainians support NATO membership, this is the right moment to make the relevant decisions," he said . Mr. Zelensky.

The visit of the head of NATO has a special symbolism, as it took place just two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the occupied regions of Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that preventing Ukraine from joining NATO remains one of the objectives of the "special military operation," as Moscow calls the attack on Ukraine. Speaking to reporters by phone, Mr. Peskov said that Ukraine's membership in NATO would create "a serious and significant threat to our country, to the security of our country."

Earlier this month, Finland joined the alliance, shedding decades of neutrality and making a historic change to the post-Cold War European security framework. Although NATO says it does not pose a threat to Russia, the Nordic country's membership is a significant political blow for Russian President Putin and doubled Russia's land border with the world's largest military alliance. Moreover, the neighboring country Sweden is expected to join NATO in the coming months./ VOA