Some NATO member states take into account the factor of Russia in the issue of Ukraine’s membership in NATO. This was stated by Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba on the air of one of the Ukrainian TV channels.
– Unfortunately, several NATO member states are still pondering the decision on the prospect of Ukraine's membership in the Alliance, asking themselves the question – what will Russia say? Therefore, we are planning to say to them that stop looking at Ukraine through the prism of Russia.
This is not what you have promised us more than once since 2008, when NATO said that no third party would influence the decision on relations between Ukraine and NATO, this position has been declared at all levels, but, unfortunately, in practice we see that the Russian factor plays a role, he noted.
The Minister is convinced that Ukraine will sooner or later become a NATO member, noting that the country has made progress in implementing reforms.
– Many countries support Ukraine's entry into NATO, I am sure that this will happen. Everything has its time. Now it is necessary to work and not to blame Ukraine for the delay in joining NATO.
There is a track of reforms, we have made progress in reforming the country, in particular in the military sphere and the security vector. At all meetings in Washington and Brussels, our partners welcome this, & # 8212; said Kuleba.
On November 19, during a meeting with journalists in Washington, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said that the issue of Ukraine's accession to NATO is not yet on the agenda.
At the same time, he stressed that for Ukraine, joining NATO is not only a matter of security, but also the development of democracy and the economy.
On June 14, 2021, the leaders of NATO member states published a communiqué following the summit, in which supported the 2008 decision that Ukraine would become a NATO member and called for continued reforms, including the fight against corruption and the reform of the SBU.
