U.S. Ambassador to NATO Julianne Smith revealed, yesterday, that NATO has plans to offer Ukraine a security package when the alliance convenes its annual summit this summer in Washington, though, Defense News added, it’s expected to stop short of accepting the nation’s long-standing request for membership, because of the war.
“Allies will be putting forward a whole package of deliverables that will serve as a bridge to their [Ukraine’s] membership inside the alliance,” Smith said at a Defense Writers Group roundtable on June 3. “Part of the package will be the language we use to describe Ukraine’s membership aspirations in the declaration itself.”
“Part of it will be an institutionalization of some of the bilateral support that’s currently being provided [to] Ukraine, and tucking it under NATO command. Part of it will be working to identify new resources for our friends in Ukraine, and ensuring that we send a signal to Moscow that the NATO alliance isn’t going anywhere,” Smith added.
