Vilnius: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says Ukraine will get a “positive message on the path to membership”, as leaders of the alliance meet in Vilnius, Lithuania.
“We will send a clear message, a positive message on the path forward. The text in the communiqué will be made public within hours,” Stolenberg said at the start of the two-day meeting with leaders of NATO member countries.
The NATO summit kicked off in Lithuania’s capital on Tuesday, after Turkey withdrew its objections to Sweden joining the alliance, a major boost that will help to alleviate tensions in Vilnius.
The moves bode well for one of NATO’s most pivotal summits, with Western leaders eager to demonstrate unity in the face of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who may attend the summit, is still hopeful that the war-torn country can secure NATO membership.
“We are working extremely hard these days. Even more actively than ever. And although this work is almost 100 percentage behind the scenes, it is no less important than any public work,” he said during his nightly video address on Monday.
However, the US and Germany have argued that Ukraine is not ready to join the group despite a show of support from the Baltic States, including Lithuania.
Comments