Ukraine expects progress on NATO membership at Washington summit in July

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) – Ukraine said on Tuesday that it expects the country would make progress on NATO membership at the upcoming summit in Washington in July.

The three-day NATO summit will begin on July 9 in the US capital, marking the 75th anniversary of the 32-member military alliance's formation.

“Ukraine's expectation from the future summit is, first of all, advancement to NATO membership,” Ruslan Stefanchuk, the speaker of the country’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, said on Facebook following a meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Interparliamentary Council.

During the meeting in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, he argued that Russia is currently attempting to seize strategic locations and break through the country's front lines.

Allies' military support has become a "matter of Ukraine's survival," Stefanchuk stressed, adding that his country's urgent needs are air defense systems, F-16 fighter jets, ammunition, long-range artillery, and armored vehicles.

Their role as parliamentarians, he said is to use all available platforms, such as today's meeting, to communicate Kyiv's position to the military alliance's leaders.

He said Ukraine is also awaiting a decision on its gradual integration into the NATO defense planning process as a future ally.

He went on to say he emphasized the importance of increasing the number of countries with which Ukraine has security agreements.

This is "not an alternative to NATO membership," he said, but it will assist Ukraine in defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity.​​​​​​​