Zelensky asks for more support from NATO: “Open door talk is not enough for Ukraine”
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday, during a meeting with his Polish and Lithuanian counterparts, in the city of Lviv, that Ukraine needs more than the promise of open doors from NATO, Reuters and AFP report.
Zelenskiy on Wednesday called on NATO to do more than just promise that Ukraine would have an open door at the July summit in Vilnius, adding that his country needed “firm steps” as it seeks to join the organization transatlantic, writes Agerpres. In September, seven months after being invaded by Russia, Ukraine requested a fast-track procedure to join NATO. The alliance states that it has an open-door policy towards Ukraine, but has not specified whether it will speed up measures towards the country’s possible accession to the organization. “For the moment, only the support from NATO colleagues and the support in the form of the speech about open doors are not enough for Ukraine. More precisely, it is not enough to motivate the state … our soldiers,” Zelenskiy said in the city of Lviv (west of the country), where he met with his Polish and Lithuanian counterparts. “We need steps forward. The decision will be in Vilnius, we are looking forward to firm steps, we count on something more than open doors”, said the Ukrainian head of state. NATO leaders promised Ukraine at the Bucharest summit in 2008 that one day the country would join the organization, but full NATO membership seems a long way off.