Zelensky comments on NATO Summit in Vilnius: ‘The results have been good’

Stoltenberg: ‘Ukraine closer to NATO than ever before’

A joint press conference by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has been held within the framework of the 2023 NATO Summit in Vilnius, Novaya Gazeta Europe’s correspondent reports.

The Ukrainian president said that “the results of the summit have been good, but if we had got an invitation [to NATO], they’d have been perfect”. According to Zelensky, “it’s absolutely clear that Ukraine cannot become a NATO member while the war is still ongoing”.

He noted that he saw “important signals” from the allies today that allowed him to gain confidence that Ukraine would become a NATO member under the right conditions.

Zelensky added that he saw “another clear signal”. “If today the G7 countries agree to the security guarantees then they will already be implemented while [Ukraine] continues on the NATO path,” he stated.

The Ukrainian leader also talked about what the security guarantees would change for the country.

“We currently don’t have actual legal security guarantees from our partners. We have the de facto ones: the financial ones and the sanctions. This decision could become the first legal document symbolising something akin to a ‘security umbrella’.

“Then Ukraine will have documents on bilateral agreements. There will be things that we either already have or the ones that we are in need of — planes, aviation — indicated in them. This document can be signed not only by the G7 countries.

“I think this is an important new phase. The best guarantee for us is NATO,” Zelensky said.

He added that on its way to NATO Ukraine would like to have guarantees and a corresponding document detailing everything thoroughly. “Today we could get an opportunity to get such a document,” he emphasised.

Zelensky noted that the cluster munitions that the US agreed to supply to Ukraine would be used only on the Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia and only for military purposes, calling their use “a question of justice”.

“Russia constantly uses cluster munitions on our territory. It wages warfare exclusively on our land, killing our people,” he explained.

“There has to be justice. There’s no justice in the aggressor occupying parts of our territory and killing people for nine years. How can we defend ourselves? We’re defending ourselves,” he said.

Stoltenberg noted that “Ukraine is now closer to NATO than ever before”. The secretary general also expects that the Kremlin “will protest”, just like they did when Finland joined the Alliance, he added.

The Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, is hosting the NATO Summit on 11-12 July. Yesterday, 11 July, NATO countries agreed to abolish the Membership Action Plan requirement to accelerate Ukraine’s accession. Stoltenberg said that Ukraine would be invited to join NATO once all the allies have agreed and “conditions have been met”.

On Wednesday morning, Polish President Andrzej Duda said that, in his opinion, NATO’s decisions in regards to Ukraine weren’t enough. “In my opinion, this is absolutely not enough. I hope that in a few years Ukraine will be the full member of our Alliance, of NATO,” he emphasised.