Ukraine won’t get formal invite to join NATO at July summit, Stoltenberg says

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said there are no ongoing discussions about issuing Ukraine a formal invitation to join the alliance at its summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, next month.

In a joint press conference Monday with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, Stoltenberg said the issue of Ukraine’s membership was not part of any discussions in advance of the July summit, but he stressed that leaders were actively discussing “how to move Ukraine closer to NATO.” 

“At the Vilnius summit and in the preparations for the summit, we’re not discussing to issue a formal invitation. What we are discussing is how to move Ukraine closer to NATO, and the ongoing consultations. I’m not in a position to preempt the outcome of those consultations,” Stoltenberg said in response to a reporter’s question about Ukraine’s potential membership. 

Stoltenberg said allies already agree on a lot, pointing to Finland’s and Sweden’s invitations to join in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He reiterated that NATO allies agree that Ukraine will one day become a member of the alliance and that Russia does not have veto power over that decision.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky previously has pressed Stoltenberg and leaders of NATO and the European Union to outline a timeline for the country’s accession. 

Stoltenberg said the most important thing was to ensure Ukraine successfully defend itself against Russia “as a sovereign, independent democratic nation in Europe.”

“Because unless we do that, unless Ukraine prevails, there is no issue to be discussed at all related to the membership,” he said. “So therefore, I am absolutely confident that at the Vilnius summit, allies will reiterate their strong support to Ukraine, and the need to — both bilaterally but also to multilateral institutions — provide support [for] Ukraine for as long as it takes.”

Ukraine launched its long-awaited counteroffensive against Russia this month, following months of preparation and more than a year of fending off the invading forces. Early assessments have indicated both sides are suffering heavy losses in battles.