Blinken, Stoltenberg discuss NATO membership 'bridge' for Ukraine

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg discussed Tuesday the alliance's plans to develop a membership "bridge" for Ukraine as Kyiv continues to combat Russia efforts to occupy more of the country.

Blinken and Stoltenberg discussed what the State Department described as "expected decisions" during a Thursday meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council "to build a bridge to NATO membership while enabling Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression, today and in the future."

The alliance begins its three-day summit on Tuesday.

The leaders also discussed what spokesperson Matthew Miller called "important decisions" that allies "will make at the Summit, including implementation of the largest reinforcement plan for our collective defense in generations, and endorsement of the NATO Industrial Capacity Expansion pledge that will enhance Allies’ ability to defend against current and future threats," spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters.

"The leaders welcomed significant progress in burden sharing, with over two-thirds of Allies now meeting the pledge to commit two percent of GDP to defense spending," he added.

In all, 23 of NATO's 32 members have hit or surpassed the target, according to the alliance's official information. Stoltenberg said Tuesday that the guideline no longer represents "some kind of ceiling" for allies, and is instead the bare minimum that should be spent amid pressing international security challenges.

Addressing reporters in brief remarks before heading into closed-door talks with Blinken, Stoltenberg said Russia's continued attacks, including a missile strike on a children's hospital in Kyiv on Monday that killed at least 36 people, "demonstrates the brutality of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, and the importance of us supporting Ukraine in upholding the right for self defense."