Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hit out on Tuesday at what he called NATO’s “absurd” refusal to offer his country a timeframe for joining the Western military alliance.
Posting on Twitter while on his way to the NATO summit in Vilnius, Zelenskyy said he has received “signals” that there will be a statement without a direct reference to membership once the war is over.
“The formula refers only to the invitation, not to Ukraine’s accession,” Zelenskyy said of the content of the statement that the allies are reportedly negotiating. He called it “absurd and unprecedented” that the declaration under discussion does not include a date for inviting Ukraine to join the Alliance.
Zelenskyy also complained that the declaration being prepared by NATO leaders alludes to “conditions” not just for Ukraine’s membership of NATO but simply for the country to be invited to join. “There seems to be no readiness either to invite Ukraine into NATO or to make it a member of the Alliance,” he said. “For Russia, this means motivation to continue its terror.”
