NATO chief says it will send ‘positive message’ about Ukraine’s membership during Lithuania summit

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg predicted that the alliance members will send a “clear and positive message” on a path forward for Ukraine’s NATO membership during their summit Tuesday and Wednesday in Vilnius, Lithuania.

At a Tuesday press conference, Mr. Stoltenberg said he is proposing a support package that includes a multiyear program to ensure full interoperability between Ukraine’s military troops and NATO forces. The agreement also is expected to remove the requirement for a formal Membership Action Plan before a country’s admittance into NATO.

“This will move Ukraine closer to NATO,” Mr. Stoltenberg said. “All of this will send a positive and strong message.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is skeptical about the generic assurances from the NATO chief, however, calling the mixed signals Kyiv is receiving “unprecedented and absurd.”

“It looks like there is no readiness either to invite Ukraine to NATO or to make it a member of the alliance,” Mr. Zelenskyy said on his Telegram social media page.

He said Ukraine will be represented at the Vilnius summit out of respect for the NATO alliance but said his country also deserves respect. 

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“We value our allies. We value our shared security,” he said. “We always appreciate an open conversation.”

Failing to formally affirm Ukraine’s NATO membership will only embolden Russian President Vladimir Putin amid the war, Mr. Zelenskyy warned.

“This means that there is still an opportunity to negotiate Ukraine’s membership in NATO, in negotiations with Russia,” Mr. Zelenskyy said. “For Russia, that means the motivation to continue its terror. Uncertainty is weakness.”

The most critical task at hand is to ensure that Ukraine prevails on the battlefield, Mr. Stoltenberg said.

“The most important thing we can do is to continue to provide weapons, ammunition (and) military support to Ukraine,” he said. “Unless Ukraine prevails as a nation, as a democratic nation in Europe, there is no issue to be discussed about security guarantees or membership in NATO at all.”