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US President Joe Biden has reiterated in the run-up to the NATO summit in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius that Ukraine will not be acceded to the alliance in the near future.
13:31, Tue, Jul 11, 2023 | UPDATED: 13:34, Tue, Jul 11, 2023
Volodymyr Zelensky expressed anger at the ‘disrespect’ of NATO (Image: GETTY )
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has hit out at NATO allies for giving Russia “motivation to continue its terror”.
Speaking on Twitter, the Ukrainian leader demanded that Ukraine “deserves respect” after he said “vague wording” regarding the preconditions to their potential membership were being made without them.
While joining NATO during their fight with Russia is a recognised impossibility, since the alliance’s Article 5 would force all members to directly participate in the conflict the moment Ukraine became a member, effectively initiating World War III, Ukraine is adamant that a concrete plan for their accession must be put into place.
Back in 2008, at a NATO summit in Bucharest, Romania, the alliance promised that Ukraine and Georgia “will become members of NATO” but did not say how or when. Many now see that as the worst form of commitment; it’s lack of conviction serves as a red rag to Russia to invade.
19 mins ago13:31 Tom Watling
Here is a photo of all the leaders of NATO from the Vilnius summit
Leaders from all 32 members of NATO, including the newly-appointed Finland and Sweden, have posed together for the beginning of their summit in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius.
ALL 32 NATO leaders gathered at the summit on Tuesday afternoon (Image: TWITTER )
43 mins ago13:07 Tom Watling
UK ‘leading’ an ‘Israel-style’ security deal with Ukraine
While it is believed the US and Germany remain hesitant about a fast-tracked NATO application for Ukraine, the UK is helping push a new security pact for Kyiv outside of the alliance.
According to the Daily Telegraph, the UK, US, France and Germany – dubbed The Quad – are looking to finalise a separate security deal to provide Kyiv with a multi-year plan to defend itself from Russian aggression.
It was reported that the deal would operate in a similar fashion to a military and financial pact that Washington has with Tel Aviv to afford it protection in the Middle East.
Mr Sunak said Britain had played a leading role in the discussions since he put the issue of multilateral Western security assurances on the table during his speech to the Munich security conference in February.
He told reporters he was “keen to try and get this over the line”.
“I think it is something that we in the UK have taken a lead on, it is something I’ve spoken a lot to fellow leaders about over the last few months,” he said. “Those conversations are ongoing so we need to keep having them, but that is the purpose of them.
“It is to demonstrate long-term commitment from a broad group of countries. It is distinct from the NATO conversation and I think it will send a very strong signal of deterrent to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, that he can’t wait people out, in terms of this conflict. I think it is important and valuable.”
48 mins ago13:02 Tom Watling
Estonia says NATO ‘owe Ukraine’ membership
Estonian prime minister Kaja Kallas has said NATO “owe Ukraine” membership to the alliance after 16 months of fighting off Russian aggression.
As the NATO summit in the Lithuanian capital gets underway, Ms Kallas said Ukraine’s accession to NATO was “ the safest, cheapest, and most credible way of deterring Russia”.
It comes as leaders of the members in attendance at the summit continue to discuss possible ways of affording Ukraine assurances in light of Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion.
#Ukraineu2019s rightful place is in #NATO.
NATO membership is the safest, cheapest, and most credible way of deterring Russia.
That is why it is so important to set Ukraine on a path towards NATO membership.
We owe it to Ukraine. Ukraine is fighting for all of us. 3/
u2014 Kaja Kallas (@kajakallas) July 11, 2023
54 mins ago12:56 Tom Watling
Sunak says Ukraine’s “rightful place” is in NATO
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has told the Daily Express that Ukraine’s “rightful place” is in NATO.
He said he wants NATO leaders to make “demonstrable progress” on allowing Kyiv to join the alliance, adding that a united alliance may convince Putin to reconsider the war in Ukraine.
2 hours ago12:01 Tom Watling
Stoltenberg hails Biden’s ‘strong leadership’
NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg has praised the “strong leadership” of US President Joe Biden ahead of the alliance’s summit in Vilnius.
The pair posed together for a photo, which Mr Stoltenberg posted on Twitter.
2 hours ago11:48 Tom Watling
Ukraine accuses NATO of being ‘afraid of responsibility’
A top Ukrainian official has criticised NATO for being “afraid of responsibility” in what appears to be a concerted effort by the country’s leading political figures to incite commitments from the alliance.
Mikhail Podolyak, the adviser to the head of Office of the President of Ukraine, issued a number of requests of NATO on Twitter just minutes after his boss, Volodymyr Zelensky, made a similar statement.
You can read the full statement below.
Today/tomorrow in Vilnius, NATO will be able to:
– regain its agency and independently determine its development strategy, disregarding the threats and prohibitions of the Russian Federation;
– correct the fatal mistakes of the 2008 Bucharest summit, when the open doors turnedu2026
u2014 u041cu0438u0445u0430u0439u043bu043e u041fu043eu0434u043eu043bu044fu043a (@Podolyak_M) July 11, 2023
2 hours ago11:39 Tom Watling
Zelensky hits out at NATO over lack of promises
Volodymyr Zelensky has hit out at NATO for alleged discusssion over the potential application without them being present.
You can read his full statement below.
We value our allies. We value our shared security. And we always appreciate an open conversation.
Ukraine will be represented at the NATO summit in Vilnius. Because it is about respect.
But Ukraine also deserves respect. Now, on the way to Vilnius, we received signals thatu2026
u2014 u0412u043eu043bu043eu0434u0438u043cu0438u0440 u0417u0435u043bu0435u043du0441u044cu043au0438u0439 (@ZelenskyyUa) July 11, 2023
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