Zelensky will not attend NATO summit in Vilnius unless Kyiv receives invitation to join the Alliance
This invitation is now on the tables of NATO leaders, presidential adviser says
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky will not attend the upcoming NATO summit unless Kyiv receives an invitation to join the alliance.
Source. This was stated by the President's diplomatic adviser Ihor Zhovkva, Reuters reports.
He reminded that Ukraine submitted the relevant application on September 30, 2022, and expects that the NATO summit on July 11-12 in Vilnius will give an answer to it.
"This application is now on the tables of NATO leaders. The Vilnius summit would be a very good start to respond to this application. And by response, we mean an invitation to membership, which is only the first step," Zhovkva said.
According to him, Zelensky "has no reason and no time to go if there is no result at the Vilnius summit."
He also drew attention to the fact that last year Sweden and Finland also applied to join NATO, and Helsinki has already joined the alliance.
Kyiv believes it is possible to resolve this issue even in the face of war with russia, Zelensky's aide said. During the confrontation, Ukraine has demonstrated that it is worthy of being part of transatlantic security.
"We are asking to start the procedure," Zhovkva emphasized.
The final decision on whether or not to attend the summit is to be made by the President of Ukraine on the eve of the event, his office said earlier. Zelensky's absence would overshadow any demonstration of Western unity at the summit, Reuters said.
Zelensky said earlier that Ukraine would like to hear "something more than 'open doors' at the Vilnius summit." He added that Kyiv understands that the country will not be able to join the bloc while there is fighting on its territory.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg promised to send a clear message to Kyiv at the upcoming summit and make it clear that the country's future lies in NATO. However, the condition for any meaningful discussion of Kyiv's membership in the alliance is that Ukraine wins the war against russia.
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