Zelensky urges Biden ahead of Vilnius summit to invite Ukraine to NATO now
MOSCOW. July 4 (Interfax) - Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has urged his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden to invite Ukraine to NATO now, Ukrainian media said, citing CNN.
"He supports our future in NATO, but an invitation [formal invitation to NATO] now would be a huge motivator," CNN quoted Zelensky as saying in an interview, which has yet to be published in full.
Zelensky believes that the U.S. president is the one who decides whether Ukraine will be in NATO or not, CNN said.
Zelensky added he understood that Ukraine would never be in NATO in current situation yet the invitation would be a very important message and motivator for Kiev, he said.
Ukrainian media also reported a phone call Zelensky had with German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday.
"We coordinated positions on the eve of the NATO Summit in Vilnius and discussed the formats of future security guarantees for Ukraine," the media quoted Zelensky as saying on a social network.
"I am grateful for the important signals of support for Ukraine at the London Recovery Conference and the European Council meeting," Zelensky said.
According to Ukrainian media, he developed the subject in his televised address on Monday.
"There must be clarity on securing our future in the alliance. We are preparing for the summit very actively and are expecting our partners to demonstrate this very kind of decisiveness, the decisiveness required by this historic moment," he said.
The media also quoted Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba as saying that Kiev is in talks with partners during preparations for the NATO summit in Vilnius.
"We see the Vilnius summit in front of us day and night and are in constant talks," Kuleba said on the national telethon on Monday night.
He added that "life won't stop" if the NATO summit in Vilnius fails to meet Ukraine's expectations.
"If what we need does not happen tomorrow, we will get it the day after tomorrow. We are working for result. As I have said before, certain serious results are emerging, but we always seek the maximum," Kuleba said.