Membership in NATO will be the best guarantee of security for Ukraine, - Vice-Chair, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Ukraine gave up nuclear weapons in exchange for security guarantees, but this did not work. Therefore, NATO membership can provide these guarantees now.

Paula Dobriansky, Vice-Chair, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, US Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs in 2001-09, expressed this opinion at the 15^th annual Kyiv Security Forum, established by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk’s “Open Ukraine” Foundation.

“We are currently moving towards more active involvement of Ukraine in NATO, and the current context requires that security guarantees ought to be provided. This includes more pro-active cooperation, unfolding now and becoming more intensified in future,” she said.

“We engaged today in a very interesting discussion and [Chair of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Ukraine’s EU Integration] Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze reminded us all that Ukraine bears the memory of the Budapest Memorandum. Ukraine gave up nuclear weapons in exchange for guarantees of protection and security of its territorial integrity and sovereignty, but this did not work out. Therefore, the today’s message is that membership in NATO will be the best security guarantee for Ukraine,” she said.

Amb.Dobransky supported the proposal of General Douglas Lute, who suggested to form a “Ukraine-NATO” Council at the Kyiv Security Forum.

“It would be possible to establish a Council now, and all the Alliance member states would join in, and it then could be possible to move in a more substantive way towards Ukraine’s membership,” she said.

Speaking about her personal standpoint on this issue, Paula Dobrianske said unequivocally: “I believe that Ukraine should become a member of NATO.”

In addition, she added that, apart from security issues, it is now necessary to talk about the restoration of Ukraine.

According to Amb. Dobriansky, the plan for Ukraine’s reconstruction should comprise several stages: 1) reforms to be performed immediately; 2) housing for Ukrainians to live in when they return to the country; 3) development of infrastructure, in particular energy infrastructure.

“And I can tell you that these steps have already started to be implemented, and we are grateful to both American and Ukrainian governments for taking this effort,” she concluded.

Noteworthy, the 15^th annual Kyiv security forum “For Our and Your Freedom/ Fighting for NATO” will be held on May 25-26, 2023, with the participation of well-known international figures. In particular, at the Forum, the KSF Security Council will be formed and a policy document will be adopted with recommendations for the NATO summit in Vilnius to be held this July.