NATO should announce Ukraine accession timeline either at Vilnius summit or by end of 2023 - Ukrainian FM

MOSCOW. April 25 (Interfax) - NATO should make a political decision to present a timeline of Ukraine's accession to the alliance either at its summit in Lithuania's Vilnius on July 11-12 or by the end of 2023, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said.

NATO allies should make a written statement at the upcoming summit that "the game is over: Ukraine is part of the West, it is on NATO's doorstep, and it will soon walk through the door. To avoid any misunderstandings, we in Ukraine are not talking about immediate membership at the Vilnius summit but about NATO allies taking a historic step toward admitting the country," Ukrainian media quoted Kuleba as saying in an article for Foreign Affairs Magazine.

Kuleba reasoned that there is no need for a membership action plan setting out certain benchmarks for Ukraine to meet prior to accession, as Finland and Sweden have shown that such programs are not really necessary and "Ukraine is more than qualified to join."

"NATO must resist the temptation to make additional demands of Ukraine that would further delay its membership," he said.

While admitting that accession to NATO is a process, and achieving the ultimate goal of Ukrainian membership will depend on the security situation, Kuleba insisted that this process "needs to start without delay."

It would also be reasonable for NATO members to decide what security guarantees they could offer Ukraine right now, pending the accession, and which of these guarantees will continue to apply after Ukraine becomes a member, in addition to those stipulated in the North Atlantic Treaty, Kuleba said.