![]() ![]() "Nobody wants to take a risk of disunity being displayed openly," said a senior Eastern European diplomat. Failing to do so would hand Putin a political and propaganda coup. Hanging over the deliberations is the question of whether alliance members can show unity by forging agreements ahead of the July 11-12 summit in the Lithuanian capital. election could yield an administration less willing to spend money on the war. Over that time, popular support for defending Ukraine in the West might fade and the 2024 U.S. Few military analysts expect Ukraine's just-launched counteroffensive to bring the grinding conflict to a quick end - instead, many predict years of fighting. Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his forces into Ukraine in February last year saying Russian security had to be protected. and Germany are wary of moves they fear could take the alliance closer to entering an active war with Russia, which has long seen NATO's expansion into eastern Europe as evidence of Western hostility.Īsked on June 2 about Ukraine's aspirations to join NATO, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it "would be a potential problem for many, many years." "There's a rich conversation going on across the alliance with a whole array of views," said Smith.Ī senior alliance source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there is "a hard search on to find a mechanism that brings Ukraine closer to NATO without taking them into NATO." ambassador to NATO Julianne Smith told reporters on Wednesday that members are still discussing how to respond to the Kyiv government's membership aspirations. The allies have yet to resolve differences over how to address Ukraine's desire for membership, which has been governed by a vague 2008 declaration that it will join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization without setting out how or when. With four weeks to go until a NATO summit in Vilnius that is expected to approve the plan, there is agreement that Ukraine cannot join the alliance while fighting is still underway against Russian forces, a position accepted in early June by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy after months of pleading for speedy admission.Īlliance members are close to agreeing incremental steps to strengthen ties with Ukraine, including upgrading how NATO and Kyiv cooperate and a multi-year program to help Ukraine bring its security forces to NATO operational and technical standards, according to officials. June 15 (Reuters) - NATO members are racing to complete a plan to provide long-term support to Ukraine, but are wrestling with how best to assure the country's security until it can join the military alliance, according to U.S. ![]()
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