Kiev, Jul. 15, (dpa/GNA) – Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba expressed satisfaction with the results of the recent NATO summit in Vilnius and said his country is already psychologically a member of the defence alliance.
“We have overcome the psychological barrier and I see that Ukraine is considered a member of NATO in real terms,” Kiev’s top diplomat said in an interview on Ukrainian television on Friday.
Kuleba said it was unfortunate that no “quantum leap” had been made. “But this quantum leap [of NATO membership] will inevitably come, and it will be much sooner than it seems to us now,” Kuleba added.
He said that everyone reassured Kiev behind closed doors that membership in the alliance was coming, but the only questions that remain were when and how fast, he said.
Kuleba added that there were discussions with partners on the wording of the “security pact” proclaimed by Western states until NATO membership can be achieved.
“We interpret it as security guarantees, they interpret it as political commitments in the field of security,” Kuleba aid. He hoped that the general declaration would be followed by bilateral documents with legal commitments.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky failed to secure a hoped-for invitation for Ukraine to formally join the alliance at the NATO summit in Vilnius.
Instead, Kiev received the assurance that the country could become a member of the alliance after the end of the war with Russia, which began in February 2022.
A security pledge from the Group of Seven nations is expected to continue to help bolster Ukraine with long-term financial and military assistance, including modern equipment for air and naval forces.
GNA