Some Western politicians fear “provoking” Putin and consider the issue “sensitive,” Politico said.
Western officials try to avoid the topic of Ukraine’s accession to NATO, so they give rehearsed and short answers. One of the reasons is the fear of provoking Russian President Vladimir Putin, who allegedly fears “NATO expansion.” Politico reports.
Although the Alliance publicly reaffirmed its open-door policy, it did not provide a concrete answer. Within NATO is divided on the question of when and how, and sometimes “should Ukraine join the Alliance.
French President Emmanuel Macron earlier said the West should consider security guarantees for Russia if it returns to the negotiating table. Such a statement caused dissatisfaction in Kyiv and may be contrary to NATO’s open door policy.
“Some very good friends of Ukraine are more afraid of a favorable response to Ukraine’s application for NATO membership than of providing Ukraine with modern weapons. There are still many psychological obstacles that we must overcome. The idea of membership is one of them,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said. .
The Ukrainian side says that by all indications it is already part of the Western military alliance and therefore deserves a fast track to formal NATO membership.
Some allies, however, question Ukraine’s long-term prospects for NATO membership, at least in theory. The differences are more about how and when the issue of Kyiv’s accession should be resolved.
Some allies favor a closer political relationship between Ukraine and NATO and want a more concrete plan that would create a framework for membership.
“I think it is inevitable that NATO will find a way to accept Ukraine,” said Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis.
However, there are people, like the President of France, who want to consider Moscow’s point of view.
Most of the allies seem to have “avoided” the topic – not rejecting Ukraine’s NATO aspirations, but stressing the need to focus on the current war.
“The immediate and urgent task is to ensure that Ukraine prevails as a sovereign, independent democratic country in Europe,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said earlier.
Analysts believe that some Western European countries, such as France and Germany, view Ukraine’s entry as a hypersensitive issue that could increase Russia’s reaction. At the same time, some Eastern European countries see Kyiv’s accession to NATO as an achievable goal of the Alliance.
Ukraine recognizes that NATO membership is inevitable, but still wants a concrete gesture from the Alliance.
“The ideal scenario, of course, is a very simple statement from NATO: ‘OK, we’ve received your application, we’re starting the process of considering it.’ It will be a significant achievement,” said Kuleba.
In 2019, Ukraine formally adopted a Constitutional amendment to move towards NATO membership.
While the country has made some reforms over the past few years, experts and partner governments say Ukraine needs to do more to integrate with Western institutions.
Remember, according to the head of the Ministry of Defense of Montenegro, Philipp Adzic, his country supports Ukraine towards NATO.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.