When did Ukraine’s NATO membership become a contentious issue among member countries?

01.06.2023

German Foreign Minister Berbock said: “NATO’s open-door policy is as usual, but at the same time, the war is still going on, and we obviously cannot discuss accepting new members.”

(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) NATO Secretary-General Stoltenberg said on Thursday (June 1) that Moscow cannot prevent Ukraine from joining NATO. Meanwhile, NATO members are divided over the progress of Ukraine’s accession ahead of the upcoming decisive summit in Vilnius in mid-July.

“All NATO members agree that Moscow has no veto power against NATO expansion,” Stoltenberg told reporters. Meanwhile, foreign ministers from NATO members gathered in Oslo to try to iron out any signs of discord ahead of the summit. “We are moving forward, and the NATO members have agreed to Ukraine’s membership,” Stoltenberg said.

NATO agreed in 2008 for Ukraine to eventually join the alliance, but leaders have so far failed to move forward, such as providing Kiev with a membership action plan that would set a timetable for Ukraine’s formal membership.

NATO leaders intended to send a strong message of support to Kiev at the Vilnius summit. But with just six weeks to go until the summit, NATO members are under increasing pressure to agree on a concrete package for Ukraine.

While Kiev and its closest NATO member in Eastern Europe have called for concrete steps to advance Ukraine’s accession process, Western countries such as the United States and Germany are wary of any move that could bring the alliance closer to war with Russiaare cautious。

Wartime acceptance of Ukraine as a member, NATO will go to war with Russia

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said Kiev had suffered two invasions in the 14 years it had been waiting for a response from NATO. “It’s time for us to actually sit down and get a very specific answer on how Ukraine will approach NATO and when they will become a member of NATO,” he said.

His call was echoed by Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna. Chakner urged NATO members to provide Kiev with a clear path into NATO and provide it with strong security guarantees after the war so as not to leave any “gray areas” for Russia to exploit. “Ukraine needs to find a clear path and next steps on how to join NATO,” Chakner said.

Stoltenberg also called for a security framework for Kiev aimed at deterring further Russian military action against the country.

Other NATO members, such as Germany and Luxembourg, have highlighted the risks of NATO rushing to bring Kiev to membership.

German Foreign Minister Berberk said: “NATO’s open-door policy is as usual, but at the same time, the war is still going on, and we obviously cannot discuss accepting new members.”

Luxembourg’s foreign minister, Asselborn, has warned that NATO’s mutual military assistance clause means NATO will go to war with Russia if it accepts Ukraine as a member in time of war.

Speaking at a meeting of more than 40 European leaders in Moldova, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reiterated thatKiev is ready to join NATO. “I think our future in the EU is very important. Ukraine is ready to join NATO and we are waiting to see when NATO will accept us as a member,” he said.

(Reuters, etc.)

© 2023 Deutsche Welle Copyright Statement: All content in this article is protected by copyright law and may not be used without special authorization from Deutsche Welle. Any wrongdoing will result in recovery and be subject to criminal prosecution.