Ukraine is on an “irreversible path” to membership of NATO, the military alliance’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed during a visit to Kyiv on Monday.
Stoltenberg made the comments alongside Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky as they met to discuss the ongoing war with Russia and future support from the alliance.
“Ukraine’s rightful place is in NATO. Ukraine will become a member of NATO,” Stoltenberg said. “The work we are undertaking now puts you on an irreversible path towards NATO membership, so that when the time is right, Ukraine can become a NATO member straightaway.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has long complained that the West has pushed him to the limits of his patience by edging closer to Russia’s borders, insisting NATO expansion years ago has enhanced its security at the expense of Moscow’s.
Stoltenberg paid tribute to the leadership and bravery that Ukraine’s people have shown since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, but acknowledged that “leadership and bravery alone cannot repel the Russian forces; you also need arms and ammunition.”
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Western allies are have been unwilling to formally invite Ukraine into the alliance, which was formed in 1949 to counter the risk of a Soviet attack on allied territory, partly due to its central mutual assistance clause.
It is pointed to as one of the primary reasons why Kyiv cannot join the NATO while at war with Russia, due to the risk of the alliance being immediately dragged into a wider conflict.
The clause, Article 5 of NATO’s Washington Treaty, says an attack on one ally is considered an attack on all members.
Stoltenberg has previously stressed that security guarantees under Article 5 will only be bestowed upon full members of the alliance.
