“The NATO summit in Vilnius should become a turning point”, - the Kyiv Security Forum calls on NATO to urgently grant membership to Ukraine

At the upcoming Summit in Vilnius, the North Atlantic Alliance must take a political decision to offer Ukraine membership in NATO and start accession negotiations.

This is stated in the comprehensive policy document of the Kyiv Security Forum “Fighting for NATO”, which was presented at the 15^th annual KSF, established by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk’s “Open Ukraine” Foundation.

“For many years the main obstacle on Ukraine’s path to NATO has been lack of political will on both sides,” the document states.

"”Instead of accepting Ukraine – a historic step that would ensure joint security and put an end to Russia’s growing geopolitical and military ambitions – many political leaders have chosen to postpone and leave such a prospect for an uncertain future. This turned out to be a tragic mistake,” the KSF emphasizes.

“The war changed everything. Ukraine’s national resistance against Russia’s aggression proved to be a real breakthrough in the security thinking of the Alliance. Ukraine has proven that it is a pillar of common security,” the document says.

The authors emphasize that these days nothing can replace Ukraine’s membership in NATO – “no special formats or temporary security arrangements.”

The Kyiv Security Forum emphasizes the need to quickly move from words to action and hopes that the NATO summit in Vilnius will be a turning point in the issue of Ukraine’s membership in the Alliance.

The document calls on the Allies to take a political decision to offer membership to Ukraine and start accession negotiations. In addition, starting negotiations within the framework of the Alliance to extend to Ukraine, for the period before joining NATO, guarantees akin to security guarantees in Article 5 of collective defense guarantees.

“Without unequivocal clarity on the issue of Ukraine’s accession to the Alliance, we risk to witness an endless war in Europe, and the issue of Ukraine’s membership in NATO, instead of becoming a fundamental element of the new European security architecture, will once again become the subject of negotiations during political deliberations,” the document emphasizes.

The full text of the policy paper can be found here.

The Kyiv Security Forum, established by Arseniy Yatsenyuk’s “Open Ukraine” Foundation, is the main platform in our country to discuss issues of war and peace, national and global security.